The claims were made on Sunday during a sports programme aired by a local TV station, infuriating the federation in the process
The Tanzania Football Federation (TFF) has strongly denied claims of improper use of Fifa funds.
In a press statement released on Sunday, the TFF said they were appaled by claims that were made during a TV debate which implied officials in the federation have used the money for their own purposes.
“Tanzania Football Federation has received with regret claims against it through a TV station, ITV, by a Mr Katabazi who questions the use of money forwarded to the federation by the world football governing body, Fifa,” TFF’s statement, on their Facebook page, read in part.
“Katabazi, on today’s sports programme aired on ITV, claimed the money from Fifa has been used by TFF officials for own allowances.”
The Tanzanian FA stated their transparency on monetary matters is not questionable given the regular audit they are subjected to.
“We would like to state categorically that those claims are false because every coin used by TFF including those from Fifa have always been audited by both internal and external auditors to ascertain whether it has been used properly,” the statement added.
“We have always been publishing all financial reports on daily newspapers as well as on our website for public consumption.”
The TFF went further to claim they are exploring various and unspecified action against Katabazi.
“The claims of poor use of funds are baseless and have been made to tarnish the image of TFF and its current leadership. Therefore, TFF will take the necessary steps against the concerned persons,” the statement, signed by the federation’s media officer Clifford Ndimbo, said.
The TFF is among Fifa’s member associations meant to benefit from the operational funding released as a relief plan to assist the football community impacted by the coronavirus pandemic.
“This starts by providing immediate financial assistance to our member associations, many of which are experiencing severe financial distress,” Fifa’s stated when it confirmed its decision to help the FA’s deal with Covid-19.
“This is the first step of a far-reaching financial relief plan we are developing to respond to the emergency across the whole football community. Together with our stakeholders, we are we assessing the losses and we are working on the most appropriate and effective tools to implement the other stages of this relief plan.
“This immediate financial assistance should be used to mitigate the financial impact of Covid-19 on football in member associations, namely to meet financial or operational obligations that they may have towards staff and other third parties.”
As the TFF face mounting criticism on financial diligence, they have to spend the funds properly given that Fifa outlined how the money should be specifically used once received.
“The standard obligations and responsibilities in relation to the use of these funds as outlined in the Forward 2.0 Regulations remain fully applicable and will be subject to the standard audit and reporting process,” Fifa said.
Katabazi’s claims came as the TFF is working on modalities that will guide resumption of football activities in the country, possibly in June.
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