It has to be done more to make Gabon football more secure, said the FifPro player union after handing over the former player’s sexual abuse to ban the life by the administrative body of world football, FIFA.
FIFA on Tuesday ruled that Patrick Assoumou Eyi, who has been the main coach of Gabon’s national teams for young people for decades, sexually abused several young boys during his career.
Eyi has been named ua 2023. BBC Africa eye investigation into widespread accusations for abuse that plagues football Gabonese.
In the investigation, the former international Gabines said that Eyi held the “position of God” because he had the power to decide who would play for Gabon’s young teams.
Eyi – known as Capello – was “just one of several individuals in Gabon football that has expressed his power unpunished,” Fifpro said in a statement on Wednesday.
Although the union welcomed FIFA’s decision to ban the former coach from all football-related activities, it was said that football in the central African country would not be safe while “all perpetrators and those who made them allow them to lead to justice.”
Eyi acknowledged charges of raping, nurturing and exploiting young players after reporting the charges for the first time Guard newspaper 2021.
FIFA’s independent Ethics Committee launched an investigation into Eyi later that year.
In addition to being banned for life, Eyi was fined one million Swiss francs (£ 880,000; $ 1.1 million). He is currently held in prison.
“Mr Eyi’s investigation refers to the complaints of at least four male football players who accused him of sexual abuse between 2006 and 2021. Most of these incidents occurred while players were minors,” FIFA said.
One of Eyi’s alleged casualties, which wanted to remain anonymous, told the BBC Wednesday that he was satisfied with the ban.
“But on the other hand, I’m not happy because I don’t want to stop there. It’s the whole net, a system that needs to be dismantled, and many predators are free,” they said.
In 2023.
One victim said he was abused as a teenager at a football camp under the age of 17. The second, who played for the Gabon national team for several years, said he had been attacked for 14 years.
In addition to the perpetrators of abuse, managing bodies such as FIFA and Gabon’s national football federation, Fegafot, faced accusations that they failed to protect young victims.
Both bodies denied the allegations made against them.
