Controversy looms over Cnosc's newly adopted texts

The Board of Conciliation and arbitration (Cca) of the Olympic and sports of Cameroon national Committee (Cnosc) met on Monday October 20 in Yaoundé, on the application for annulment made by Abdouraman Hamadou, president of Etoile filante Garoua.

On September 12, the president of Etoile filante Garoua addressed a letter to the Board of conciliation and arbitration of Cnosc, an application for "annulment of the Statute of the Fecafoot adopted on August 23, 2014.

This request was based on the fact that on the one hand, the querelles articles were in contradiction with the law and on the other hand, such statutes have been adopted by an unlawful assembly.

Indeed, from the reading of these articles, it appears that paragraphs 2 and 3 of article 78 contradict article 44 paragraph 2 of Act No. 2011/018 of July 15, 2011 on the Organization and promotion of physical and sporting activities in Cameroon which provides that 'in case of exhaustion of internal remedies to the federation, one of the parties may, ultimately at the national level, enter the Board of Conciliation and arbitration established with the national Olympic and sporting Committee'.

Thus, under article 78 paragraph 2 of the new statutes of the Fecafoot, the seizing of the Board of Conciliation and arbitration is conditioned by prior acceptance of both parties.

However, article 44, paragraph 2 of Act No. 2011/018 of July 15, 2011 makes it clear that the Board of conciliation and arbitration may be seized by the portion not satisfied by a decision after exhaustion of domestic remedies within the Federation.

The legislature of the Fecafoot is believed to violate the law by requiring that the referral to the Board of conciliation is made by both parties, this defiance of the law which indicates that only one party may enter this instance.

Moreover, imposing that the seizing of the Cca is subject to acceptance of both parties to the dispute is illogical since one cannot ask a party which has been successful to agree to submit the case to the attention of a new Court which is likely to take a contrary decision.

Article 78, paragraph 3 of the new statutes of the Fecafoot provides that "the decisions of the arbitral Tribunal of football and the Board of conciliation and arbitration are subject to appeal before the arbitral Tribunal of Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland."

In deciding that the Court of arbitration for football statue ultimately at the national level, article 78, paragraph 3 above comes in contradiction with article 44 paragraph 2 of Act No. 2011/018 of July 15, 2011 on the Organization and promotion of physical and sporting activities in Cameroon, in understanding that the legislature has already instituted a single Court of last resort for disputes emanating from the federations.

By Law, any decision cannot be made ultimately by the courts of a federation.

The sole gateway leading to the heap is, according to the law, the Cca. In this context, the provisions of article 78, paragraph 3 of the new statutes of the Fecafoot are also illegal. These provisions are so illegal that the General Assembly, which adopted was itself is deemed illegitimate.