Chung accuses FIFA of not providing 'reasoned decision' for ban

FIFA presidential contender Chung Mong-Joon on Wednesday accused FIFA of failing to provide a "reasoned decision" for his ban after a Swiss court rejected his request to lift it temporarily.
The South Korean tycoon has been banned for six years by FIFA's independent ethics committee, which also suspended FIFA head Sepp Blatter, secretary-general Jerome Valcke and UEFA president Michel Platini for 90 days.

Chung had petitioned the Swiss court for an injunction against the ban so that he could maintain his candidacy pending his appeal to FIFA's appeal committee and to the Lausanne-based Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

But the court rejected his petition "on the grounds that without the reasoned decision, it has no grounds to make a decision", Chung said.

"FIFA continues to sabotage my candidacy," Chung said in a statement, adding that the watchdog "has yet to send me the reasoned decision" two weeks after it announced the ban.

"As of now, I still do not know the exact basis on which they imposed a six-year ban on me, which I must have in order to appeal the unjust sanctions imposed on me by FIFA's Ethics Committee," he said.

The scion of the Hyundai family was found to have contravened rules while lobbying for South Korea's bid for the 2022 World Cup, which was awarded to Qatar in 2010.

"I am in a double bind: I cannot maintain my candidacy because of the unjust sanctions, but I cannot appeal those sanctions or get an injunction from the Swiss court because I do not have the reasoned decision," Chung said.

He said the integrity of the election had already been "seriously undermined" by interferences from Blatter and his associates.

"They may ultimately prevent me from standing for FIFA president," he said. "However, as someone who truly loves football, I will continue to do all that I can to change FIFA."

The billionaire former FIFA vice president has promised to press ahead with legal action against Blatter for "embezzlement".

Source: AFP