Editorial: Truly, LFA’s Bility Must Explain Publicly

A few weeks ago, the President of the Liberia Football Association or LFA, Mr. Musa Bility made a public declaration that he and his FA would be voting for one of the two candidates in the June 1 FIFA  presidential election, Asian FA President Mohammed Bin Hammam. Because an annual amount of US$3,000,000.00 to Liberia was predicated upon Liberia’s vote, Mr. Bility decided to go for the Qatari.

According to the LFA President, his decision was not in consonance with the Executive Committee which is the highest decision-making body in the absence of  the FA Congress, but what he  referred to as ‘the Emergency Committee’. Bility had boisterously told the Liberian public that his decision was in line with a declaration signed and issued by members of the West Africa Football Union or WAFU, including Nigeria and Ghana.

That was not only a make-up by the Liberia FA President, but far from the truth as evidenced by the Nigeria Football Federation or NFF’s public denial. The Nigeria Football Federation made it emphatically clear that at no time did it meet or sit with Mr. Bility or his colleagues from Ghana or any other WAFU members to declare support for Mohammed Bin Hammam.

The NFF, however, noted that any decision to support a candidate in the FIFA Presidential election on June 1 would be a self-initiative. Nigeria has already announced that it would vote for current President Joseph Sepp Blatter. The issue being raised here is not about hatred for Mr. Bility  or antagonizing his administration as he’s insinuating in certain quarters, but the embarrassment which he has brought upon Liberian football by publicly making am unsubstantiated declaration of WAFU support which has turned out to be false and misleading.

The withdrawal of his candidate, Mohammed Bin Hammam from the FIFA Presidential race, as well as suspension from all football activities due to bribery allegations by the Ethics Committee of FIFA, leaving Mr. Blatter as the only candidate, is another embarrassment the LFA President has caused Liberia.

Perhaps, had Mr. Bility patiently engaged the Executive Committee of the LFA, other than taking a unilateral decision to cast his vote for Bin Hammam ( under the guise of an emergency committee), he would have averted such an embarrassment.

Football administration is a serious business that requires the highest degree of care, consultations and responsibility, and not just sentiments- the path on which Mr. Bility usually thrives.  The politics characterizing contemporary football is what the young football administrator needs to comprehend before ever ‘jumping into conclusion’.

Now that there is a change in the politics of the Federation of International Football Association or FIFA as it relates to the ensuing election, what has the Liberia FA President got to offer, having said all that he could a few weeks ago? How does he even approach the electoral process, now that Nigeria and other WAFU members have left him in the “cold”?

Mr. Musa Bility owes the general Liberian public an explanation-that which must be done to save the image of Liberian football nationally and internationally. Truly, LFA’s Bility must explain.