February 1, 2019
By Sahr Morris Jnr
Sierra Leone’s President, Julius Maada Bio is one of many Sierra Leoneans who is hoping that the World football governing body, FIFA will lift the country’s suspension on international football.
The head of state was amongst the over 35,000 crowd that witnessed the country’s National Premier League opening match between East End Lions and Mighty Blackpool.
He told the BBC: “We want to be part of the FIFA world, but of course we have to make sure that internally we do what we have to do. I’m sure before the end of our league the suspension would have been lifted. We’re not just paying attention to the local league; we are also taking action as the suspension is concerned too, so that it can be lifted as soon as possible.”
FIFA suspended Sierra Leone for what they considered as government interference in the country’s football affairs.
The FIFA decision came after their letter to the country’s sports minister expressing “grave concern” about the removal of SLFA president Isha Johansen and general secretary Christopher Kamara.
A call from FIFA was made for both individuals to be allowed to access SLFA premises, but the country’s anti-graft body insisted that they should step-aside until their alleged corruption case in court concludes.