Football Kenya Federation (FKF) president Nick Mwendwa is crossing fingers that the April 24 deadline set by Fifa for his office to pay former Harambee Stars coach Adel Amrouche will be met.
FKF are in the race against time to part with Sh 109 million awarded to Amrouche for unlawful dismissal, failure to which Harambee Stars will be locked out of the 2022 World Cup qualifiers.
In an interview with a local television station, Mwandwa said he was keen to meet the ultimatum despite the financial constraints his office is battling
The federation boss expressed his frustrations after failing to successfully convince the Ministry of Sports to pay the street-wise Amrouche. He said the Ministry overlooked their case due to the coronavirus pandemic
"We explained our case to the Ministry but we did not get assistance since coronavirus is the top priority at the moment. We have also tabled our position to Fifa and we are waiting for their response too. We risk not participating in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers but we remain hopeful that we will meet the deadline should Fifa not extend their grace period," he said.
Mwendwa reiterated his commitment to conducting the repeat Fkf polls in accordance with the Fifa statutes but at the same time, hit out to his challengers for trying to ascend to power by all means.
" FKF is not a governmental organisation and therefore we shall abide by the Fifa laws just to avoid their wrath. Those opposing me have failed before and want to win the election through dubious means. There is no stakeholder who is opposing me apart from two or three individuals who are aware that they will not be elected, " he stated.
He defended the eligibility clause which required the presidential candidates to have been involved in the game in the last four years. The SDT faulted the clause, saying it went against the principle of Fair Play.
" There was a similar clause in 2015, where the presidential candidates were required to have been involved in the game for two years. They (opposers) introduced it in a bid to lock me out and I don't understand why they are now crying foul," he added.
Meanwhile, the Kariobangi Sharks club president said he would concede defeat should he lose in the repeat exercise. "If they meet the criteria, contest and win, I will accept defeat and concentrate on something else," he concluded.