By Victor Kanayo
Reports reaching Heritage Times HT has revealed that former President of Confederation of African Football (CAF), Issa Hayatou, has passed on.
According to Radio France, Hayatou, 77, died in Paris, France on Thursday.
Also confirming his demise, a CAF spokesman in a condolence message said, the erstwhile CAF supremo left a legacy in the continental football that will be greatly missed.
Already, tributes have begun to pour in for the soccer legend.
Born on August 9, 1946, in Garoua, Cameroon, the former Cameroonian footballer exited on the eve of his birthday.
A former 400m and 800m champion of Cameroon, who served as President of CAF between 10th March 1988 – 16th March 2017, Hayatou died after a protracted illness in the French capital, Paris on the eve of his 78th birthday.
Hayatou, who served as Secretary of the Federation Cameroonaise de Football (FECAFOOT) in the 1970s, was elected CAF President on the margin of the 1988 Africa Cup of Nations finals in Morocco, to take office from interim boss, Dr Abdelhalim Mohamed, who had stepped in the previous year following the death of Dr. Ydnekatchew Tessema.
Tall, energetic and visionary, Hayatou (who was born to the royal family in the northern Cameroonian town of Garoua) was also a member of the International Olympic Committee, and served as Acting President of football’s world-ruling body FIFA for four months and 18 days (8th October 2015 – 26 February 2016) following the suspension of Sepp Blatter and prior to the election of Gianni Infantino.
After 29 years in office as CAF President, Hayatou lost the bid for a fresh term in an election won by Ahmad of Madagascar at an elective Congress in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa on 16th March 2017.
