Rwanda: CAF Disqualifies Rwanda From AFCON 2015
A footballer with two set of names and dates of birth and played for two countries.
The protest by Congo contested the eligibility of the player Birori Dady aligned with Rwanda, and plays for the AS Vita Club of Kinshasa with Congolese (DRC) passport as Etekiama Agiti Tady, and a different age.
Following investigations by CAF and on the basis of documents provided by the federations of Rwanda, Congo and DR Congo, and hearing the player’s testimony on 11 August 2014 at CAF headquarters in Cairo, CAF established that the two identities only referred to a single person.
Birori was involved in the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations qualification representing Rwanda. In the first round, he played in two games against Libya, the first leg on 18 May ended in a 0-0 draw and on 31 May in the second leg he scored a hat-trick in a 3-0 victory.
The Libyan Football Federation filed a complaint with Confederation of African Football that the player should not be eligible and that he had participated in the 2009 CAF Champions League as a Congolese man. Rwandan Football Federation (FERWAFA) Secretary General Olivier Mulindahabi stated that the player was eligible as he had played within Rwanda for five years and he was a Rwandan passport holder.
On 18 August, CAF announced that they had suspended the player for using two different names and dates of birth. In addition, Rwanda were disqualified from the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations qualification competition for attempting to mislead CAF. In a statement CAF said that the “Rwandan Football Federation (FERWAFA) maintained that to their knowledge the player Dady Birori had one identity” yet that “investigations revealed that he was summoned as Etekiama Agiti Tady by FERWAFA to join the national team of Rwanda.”
Based on these and other findings, the Organising Committee of the Orange Africa Cup of Nations in accordance with Article 41 of the regulations of the Africa Cup of Nations, and Articles 82 and 83.1 of CAF Disciplinary Code, resolved that Rwanda are losers of the qualifiers against Congo, and consequently being eliminated from the competition
It then, cosigned Congo to the group phase of the qualifiers in Group A, as replacement for Rwanda.
The decision of the Committee takes effect immediately and with option for appeal in accordance with the regulatory provisions in force in CAF Disciplinary Code.