Addis Ababa, Nov 23 (IANS) Federation of International Football Associations (FIFA) presidential candidates Jerome Champagne and Prince bin al-Hussein Ali are here in Ethiopia, soliciting votes ahead of the election.
“Yes, two aspirants spoke to us on Friday during the Cecafa General Assembly and they have continued to speak to us even now,” Leodagar Tenga, the out-going Council for East and Central African Football Associations (Cecafa) president, told Xinhua.
The two FIFA presidential candidates have sought votes from the 11 Cecafa member-nations.
The FIFA presidential election will take place on February 26, 2016, at FIFA headquarters in Zurich to find a successor to the suspended Sepp Blatter, who is under criminal investigation.
The Swiss 79-year-old announced he would be stepping down in June as the world’s soccer governing body is at the centre of a corruption scandal.
Ethiopia’s FA President Juneid Bashar Tilmo told Xinhua that it is good the two candidates have found time to come and speak to members of the Cecafa region.
“We have listened to them and we still have time to decide before the elections next year,” he added.
Vincent Nzamwita, the president of the Rwanda FA, also welcomed the idea of the two FIFA presidential aspirants coming to speak to Cecafa members.
“This is s a good step and we will continue to listen to their ideas ahead of the elections,” said Nzamwita.
Cecafa member associations which will vote during the FIFA Assembly include Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia, Sudan, South Sudan, Djibouti, Tanzania, Burundi, Rwanda, Eritrea and Somalia.