By Danesius Marteh,
Liberia Football Association (LFA) President Mustapha Ishola Raji hasn’t overcome the red-card shown to him by LFA appeals committee chairperson Edwina Barchue (Cllr.).
The LFA has announced an extraordinary congress for the confirmation and election of individuals appointed to the judicial, club licensing and elections bodies and admittance of new members in accordance with the statutes at its headquarters on 22 February.
The appointment of a new judicial body and admittance of new member are not only violations of the statutes but an arrogant posture by Raji and his executive committee.
The plan to illegally replace the appeals committee is cleverly driven by Raji, who has been annoyed by two rulings by Edwina in Jubilee’s call for an extraordinary congress and Shaita Angels President Benita Urey’s appeals against a five-year ban.
LFA secretary-general Emmett Crayton, functioning as a conveyor belt at an airport, had written Edwina for an investigation by the executive committee following the rulings.
But Edwina’s response epitomizes the strength of a woman as was written by Jamaican-American reggae musician Orville Richard Burrell, who is professionally known as Shaggy.
“After careful considerations of the contents of your letter, the applicable provisions of the LFA statutes (2018, as amended) and Fifa statutes, I respectfully but firmly state that I will not submit myself to any investigation initiated or directed by the executive committee,” Edwina responded to Crayton on 21 January.
Edwina cited judicial independence of the appeals committee,
absence of executive committee authority over judicial acts and improper reliance on allegations and external publications.
Judicial independence
She reminded Crayton that article 80 of the LFA statutes establishes the appeals committee as an independent judicial body.
Furthermore, Edwina wrote, article 83.1 provides that members of the appeals committee shall be independent in the performance of their duties and shall not be subject to instructions from any body or official of the LFA.
Similarly, she argued, article 58(1) of the Fifa statutes mandates that the judicial bodies of member associations must act independently and free from undue influence.
She said any attempt by the executive committee—an administrative and political body—to compel a judicial officer to submit to an investigation arising directly from a judicial act or decision constitutes a direct violation of the principle of judicial independence and is therefore ultra vires.
No executive authority over judiciary
Edwina said neither the LFA statutes nor the Fifa statutes confer upon the executive committee the power to review, question or suspend judicial decisions of the appeals committee or initiate disciplinary or investigative proceedings against judicial officers arising from the exercise of their adjudicatory mandate.
She noted that article 83.3 of the LFA statutes defines the competence of the appeals committee but doesn’t vest interpretative supremacy in the executive committee.
It says the committee is responsible for hearing appeals against decisions from the disciplinary and the ethics committees that are
not declared final by the relevant LFA regulations.
Edwina emphasized that disagreement with jurisdiction or procedure must be resolved through lawful appellate or review mechanisms, not through administrative sanctions or investigations.
Under article 56 of the Fifa statutes, she recalled, judicial bodies are separate from the executive bodies, and any interference exposes the association to potential sanctions for breach of statutory governance standards.
Bribery allegations
Edwina said the reference to allegations [of bribery] published by Liberian Sports International as a basis for an investigation is legally untenable.
For the foregoing reasons, Edwina declined to submit to any investigation initiated or directed by the executive committee in relation to a judicial act or decision of the appeals committee, reaffirmed her commitment to the LFA statutes, Fifa statutes and the principles of fairness, independence and due process and reserved all rights available under national and international football governance frameworks.
This response, she concluded, is issued without prejudice and strictly in defense of the autonomy and integrity of the appeals committee.
Edwina was correct because Raji and his executive committee would have sought an appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport in keeping with 83.4 since they were unpleased with her rulings.
In a clear judicial overreach, Raji wants to dismantle Edwina’s committee although its four-year tenure, in keeping with article 80.5 of the LFA statutes, has not ended.
Chapter 18 of the LFA statutes establishes a legislative, executive, judicial and administrative bodies.
Under article 30.1, congress is the supreme and legislative body.
Under article 30.2, the executive committee is the executive body.
Article 30.3 makes the general secretariat the administrative body.
Whereas the disciplinary, ethics and appeal committees shall constitute the judicial bodies under article 30.4.
Article 30.5 gives rise to an electoral committee and election appeals committee to organize and supervise all elections.
The LFA statutes calls for a republican form of government just as the Liberian constitution did in article three with three separate coordinate branches.
But in the words of Atty. Joseph Yado Howe, arrogance lives and thrives at the LFA where Raji is a lawyer, referee, referee instructor, referee assessor, coach, medic, match commissioner, journalist, financial expert, banker, marketing expert, women’s football expert, generator operator, an accountant, electrician and auditor among others.
The only things Raji doesn’t know in this world is the high school and or college he graduated from and who were his classmates.
