Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) - The coast is clear for CAF President Issa Hayatou to retain the presidency of the African soccer governing body in this month's election of the body, after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) dismissed the appeal filed by Jacques Anouma against regarding his candidacy for the CAF presidency.
The Ivorian Football Federation (FIF) had proposed the candidature of Mr Anouma for the presidential election of 10 March, a nomination which was declared inadmissible by the CAF Executive Committee.
According to a CAF statement, CAS on Tuesday confirmed that the CAF Executive Committee had jurisdiction to refuse Anouma's candidature, that the CAF Statutes adopted in September 2012 were applicable in assessing the validity of the candidates in the presidential election and that Anouma did not meet these criteria because he had never been a member the CAF Executive Committee.
PANA reports that earlier, another appeal filed by the Liberia Football Association - on the eligibility conditions for the election - was also rejected by CAS, which is based in Lausanne, Switzerland.
The rulings mean that Hayatou remains the only candidate for the election, to be held in Marrakech, Morocco.
Last year, CAF had confirmed, in a statement after its Executive Committee meeting in Egypt, that the 66-year-old Hayatou will be unchallenged for re-election.
This followed a controversial amendment that was made to the Confederation's statutes last September, when member nations voted to introduce a measure that will permit only executive committee officials to run for the organisation's presidency.
Hayatou, who has been CAF President since 1987, has said he will never contest again if he is re-elected this month.
Pana 06/03/2013