Ali Thameem
With a majority of votes from member clubs of the Football Association of Maldives, the newly drafted articles of association have been approved at the ordinary congress held this evening at Meeruma Hotel.
The congress, attended by two voting delegates from eight of the ten first-division clubs and one delegate from each of the fifteen second-division clubs, was boycotted by United Victory and Club Eagles.
Under the newly approved statutes, membership of FAM is formally restricted to the first and second division clubs of the FA.
This amendment allows membership of first division clubs to be increased from eight to ten, while also expanding membership of second division clubs from thirteen to fifteen.
It also omits the “nine zones” previously recognized as FAM members under Article 10 (c). The legal omission of the nine geographical zones – a heavily scrutinized decision – takes effect after years of the nine zones being excluded from FAM’s electoral process.
FAM moves to dissolve the nine zones, expand membership of top two divisions
Under the newly approved statutes, FAM’s executive committee (EXCO) must consist of two female members. The statutes also mandate the creation of a women’s national tournament. The new EXCO is required to submit a blueprint of the tournament within one year after their election. Formation of regional tournaments are also to be expected under the supervision of the new EXCO.
Integrity checks and conflict of interest checks are also to be rolled out in order to preserve the independence of audit, compliance and judicial bodies of the FA.
In addition, the statutes now mandates the salary and allowance of the EXCO members to be published, in addition to the publication of annual reports on finance, audit and compliance. A clause which requires permission of the EXCO in agreements that require massive financial investments.
The ordinary congress also voted for the membership rights of New Radiant Sports Club and Victory Sports Club to be reinstated in full – the two clubs had previously been stripped of their rights after being suspended. This means that, as a first division club, the newly promoted Victory SC can now be allowed two delegates each with one vote in the upcoming elections.
The congress decided that 26th July be the date of elections for the new EXCO, including a new president. While the deadline to submit presidential candidacy is set for next Saturday, the former president Bassam Adeel Jaleel will not be allowed to run for re-election.
Overseeing the amendment of the FAM statutes is one of the primary responsibilities of the Normalization Committee, which was invoked by FIFA and took over the administration of FAM last August. The normalization committee’s mandate is set to expire by the end of this July.
