Incumbent leader calls on rivals to stop groundless slandering in football chief election

Chung Mong-gyu, a candidate in the election for Korea Football Association president, speaks during a press conference in Seoul, Feb. 11. Yonhap Chung Mong-gyu, the incumbent head of the national football body seeking his fourth term, on Tuesday urged his rivals to stop their groundless slandering in their election campaign.

Chung is one of three candidates running for president of the Korea Football Association (KFA), alongside former Korean men's national team head coach Huh Jung-moo and former television football analyst Shin Moon-sun. The election has been rescheduled for Feb. 26 after multiple hiccups last month.



It was initially set for Jan. 8. "I am relieved that the date of the election has been finally set.

I think it's unfortunate that pressing issues at the KFA have been left unresolved because the election has been pushed back," Chung said at a press conference. "At such a critical juncture, I would like to call on all candidates to halt their attacks and to stop any action that can further delay the election. I would also like to ask them to focus on their campaigning and the election.

"We can no longer afford to push this election in a direction that doesn't help Korean football," Chung added. "I am worried that people in football will gradually lose their interest in this election if we continue to ignore outstanding issues in football and only engender mistrust." Though Huh and Shin have not formally consolidated their candidacies, they have been united in going after Chung's throne.

On Jan. 7, the Seoul Central District Court granted an injunction filed by Huh to stop the proceedings. Huh had raised issues with the makeup of the KFA's election management committee, claiming that its members were pro-Chung.

Huh had also argued that the KFA deliberately tried to exclude a certain group of voters from the electoral college, a point echoed by Shin. Two days later, the KFA announced the election would be held Jan. 23, but both Huh and Shin said they had never agreed to the new schedule.

The election was then postponed indefinitely when all eight members of the election management committee resigned Jan. 10. The KFA rebuilt the election committee with 11 members — three former officials of the National Election Commission (NEC), three from the legal field, three from the media and two from academia.

Park Yeong-soo, former NEC secretary general, was named the head of the committee on Feb. 3. Before settling on the new election date, the KFA filed an administrative suit against the sports ministry on Jan.

21, asking the Seoul Central District Court to nullify the ministry's demand to penalize Chung based on its findings in an extensive probe last year. The ministry said in November that it had found a series of rules violations and other irregularities, and said the KFA must at least suspend Chung and other senior executives as a result. The KFA appealed that decision but the ministry dismissed it in early January, forcing the KFA to act on the demand within a month.

But with the early February deadline approaching, the KFA decided to take the matter to court. In the meantime, Chung has been allowed to stay in the election. Chung Mong-gyu, a candidate in the election for Korea Football Association president, speaks during a press conference in Seoul, Feb.

11. Yonhap Chung repeated his earlier claims that there might have been some misunderstanding between the KFA and the ministry, but demurred when asked about the suit. "I believe the KFA handled the matter appropriately," he said.

"But I don't have all the details with me. I don't think I can discuss that here." Chung said the multiple postponements afforded him extra time to travel around the country to meet with a diverse group of people working in football — be they players, referees or administrators at regional football associations.

"I am grateful for that opportunity," Chung said. "It has given me more clarity on what I need to do if I am elected as KFA president for one last time." Chung had previously claimed he will not seek another term if he is elected this time.

On Tuesday, Chung also said he will try to develop a new generation of football administrators during his next term if he wins the election. "When I look back on my previous terms, one of the most disappointing aspects is that I have not developed enough administrators for the future generation," Chung said. "If I win the election, I will provide full support to develop new talent that can lead Korean football in the future.

" (Yonhap).