African football executive accused of ‘whitewashing’ report on his conduct | Football

African Football Confederation Secretary General Veron Mosengo-Omba could be suspended after being accused of “covering up” an investigation into allegations of serious misconduct against him.

CAF’s Audit and Compliance Committee alleged that there was “undue interference” by Mosengo-Omba in relation to a report on his conduct because the external auditor was appointed by him.

Last month, CAF opened an investigation into Mosengo-Omba and his office after the head of the governance, risk and compliance (GRC) department accused them of “obstructing” members of her department from carrying out their duties and, among other allegations, breaching internal governance and audit rules.

CAF said its audit and compliance committee would appoint an independent international law firm or audit and professional services firm to conduct the investigation, and its president, Patrice Motsepe, promised that “appropriate action will be taken immediately if any inappropriate conduct or behavior is identified”.

When external auditor EY submitted a report, it was rejected by the committee. The committee wrote in a report seen by the Guardian that it “could not obtain reasonable assurance as to the accuracy of the opening balances for the period in question”.

The committee said it was “surprised to receive a so-called ‘draft report from the audit and compliance committee’” via Caf’s director of legal affairs. “The committee learned that this ‘draft report’ which it is to validate, had been prepared by an external consultant recruited by the Caf secretariat, without informing the committee and without obtaining its prior approval,” the committee said.

An EY consultant presented her report at a meeting on September 7, but members of the audit and compliance committee decided it was “drafted in such a way that it contradicted all the assertions in the GRC’s confidential report.”

They said: “The Committee is convinced that this work is directed towards the goal of whitewashing parties to the detriment of others involved in the ongoing independent investigation. By appointing an external consultant to interfere in the work of the Committee without our consent, the CAF Secretariat is violating the principle of independence of our Committee and exceeding its statutory powers in this regard.”

The commission’s report also accused its vice-chair Mouhamed Nour-Dine Assindoh of having contacted the consultant about her report without her consent. It called for Assindoh to be suspended from the commission until the end of his term in June 2027 and for Caf to take the “necessary decisions” regarding Mosengo-Omba. The commission reportedly believes that suspending Mosengo-Omba would be an appropriate first step. Neither Caf nor Mosengo-Omba responded to repeated requests for comment from the Guardian.

Mosengo-Omba posted on X in July: “My efforts to turn around and regularize this institution, which has at times been disrespected, are being sabotaged by a report out of nowhere with complaints without documented evidence. The planned independent investigation will expose the falsity and origin of this report.”

At a meeting of CAF’s executive committee in Nairobi last week, Motsepe insisted that the audit and compliance commission’s investigation into Mosengo-Omba would be allowed to proceed without interference. “Nobody will tell them how to do their job,” he said. “They are independent.”

Caf was embarrassed when a livestream of the usually closed executive committee meeting in the Kenyan capital accidentally appeared on YouTube. It was removed after Motsepe openly questioned the integrity of some members of the executive committee. “You are not my friend and you are not helping me if you are not honest with me,” he said.

A proposal to extend the age limit of 70 by five years for future members of the executive committee was passed unopposed, a move expected to prompt 71-year-old Egyptian and FIFA council member Hany Abo Rida to announce he will run against Motsepe in next year’s elections.