Out-going Club Africain boss, Slim Riahi has been asked by his predecessor Kamel Idir to declare all monetary donations made to the team during his tenure as chairman. Riahi’s reign at the helm will come to an end this month when the club goes to Congress after the 54-year-old revealed that he has no intentions of seeking a renewed term.
The former African Champions are in the midst of a crisis following reports of disharmony rocking the Tunisian outfit. Players of the first-team recently staged a week-long protest demanding to be paid owed wages, a meltdown which prompted supporters to storm the club’s base, calling an end to the unrest.
News of Riahi’s departure triggered last week’s protests with many uncertain over whether the players will be cleared their owed salaries. The Tunisian-based club has accumulated a massive debt of 100 million Tunisian Dinar (over $39 million) in the years Riahi was chairman.
Seeking re-election will mean having to shoulder the burden of paying the aforesaid amount at a time his assets are frozen by the government over graft charges, and, as a result, the businessman-cum politician has decided to quit for good.
Weighing into the situation, erstwhile club boss Kamel Idir asked Riahi to present the amount the club received in money donations including a comprehensive financial report detailing the financial expenditure during his tenure.
Reports in Tunis quote the overall donation to be a whopping 100 million Tunisian Dinar (over $39 million).
[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“We need everything in paper as everything (including the donation money) should be clear to all,”[/perfectpullquote]
Idir said.
Candidate crisis?
Whoever gets to succeed the current leader will have a herculean task to sort out as the ongoing crisis continues to stretch on. There already appears to be a shortage in the number of individuals willing to fill the void created by the departure of Riahi.
November 9th, 2017, is the deadline for aspirants to apply for the chairmanship.
A meeting of former club heads was summoned to find a way out of the current mess the team is trapped in, as well as discuss the selection of candidates for November 12th Congress. Not much progress was registered in Wednesday’s convergence according to a source, suggesting the deadline for candidates’ application could likely be extended.
In a separate development, under-fire club coach Marco Simone yesterday held a conference clarifying he’s still in charge of training with the first-team.
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