If CAF truly wants to move past this “legacy of suspicion” and restore “credibility of results”, it must look at the procedural negligence that occurred on the pitch.
The integrity of a match is decided by the officials in real-time. The moment Senegal walked off, the laws of the game dictated an immediate forfeiture. By allowing the match to continue, and by Morocco consenting to finish the game through a penalty shootout, the officials waived the walk-off penalty.
You cannot claim “governance” and “ethics” when you attempt to retroactively change a result 60 days after the final whistle. If the referee messed up, that is a CAF officiating blunder, not a reason to strip a trophy months later.
The result on the grass must stand, or the “suspicion” you speak of will never die.
Wandile Mtana, Uitenhage
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