FIA President proposes controversial changes

As the election for the FIA President approaches later in the year, current leader Mohammed Ben Sulayem is proposing changes that could push things further in his favour.

Ahead of next month’s FIA General Assembly, BBC Sport has reported proposed revisions that will be voted on at the Assembly.

These changes include bringing forward the deadline for candidates to confirm their interest from 21 to days prior to 49, but critically giving the incumbent, Ben Sulayem the power to bar any candidate from running against him.

BBC reports one proposal states there “must not be anything in the record of the candidates standing for the election as members of the presidential list that calls into question their professional integrity.”

If issues do arise, it would be referred to the FIA’s ethics committee which is headed by Ben Sulayem.

He is also proposing the President should “appoint” the final four of 16 members of the FIA senate without consultation with the other members.

The FIA may already to find itself challenged in court after several members of the World Council for Motorsports were blocked from attending the last meeting, having refused to sign a new Non-Disclosure Agreement that President Mohammed Ben Sulayem presented them with.

That was the message David Richards, Chairman of Motorsport UK – the British motorsports federation – sent in a letter to his fellow members, that was then circulated to the BBC, among other British media outlets. 

Listing the reasons he no longer supports the Emirati, after voting for him in the last election, the Prodrive boss explained that “for some time now I’ve had concerns about the erosion of accountability and good governance within the FIA.” Richards then procedes to detail that “an issue has recently emerged that has compelled me to take a stand and needs an explanation.”

He explained that one of the reasons he supported Ben Sulayemn’s bid to become FIA president was his promise to be a ‘hands off’ leader, appointing and empowering a competent CEO to do the daily job, but stated that “I’m afraid that over the last three years there has been a distinct failure to meet these promises. In fact, the situation has progressively worsened with media reports confirming that numerous senior members of the FIA and volunteer officials have either been fired or have resigned under an opaque cloud.”

One of the recent changes introduced in the FIA’s operations in particular has convinced Richards the Fédération is heading in the wrong direction: “The scope of the Audit and Ethics Committees has been severely limited and now lacks autonomy from the authority of the president, while our UK representative, who challenged certain matters, was summarily removed along with the chair of the Audit Committee.”

Then, on the most recent episode that has divided the FIA, Richards insists that “various techniques have also been deployed with the effect of limiting the proper function of the World Motor Sport Council – primarily the use of e-voting which removes the opportunity for much needed discussion and debate on key subjects. This has become increasingly worrying. The final straw for me, three weeks ago, was being asked to sign a new confidentiality agreement that I regarded as a ‘gagging order’.”

From Richards’ point of view, “the construction of this new confidentiality agreement does not comply with the Statutes of the FIA and contradicts the promise of transparent governance we had voted for.

“I therefore asked that we debate the matter at the World Motor Sport Council, which was just days away, rather than having it forced upon us as a condition of attendance. My request, along with those of a few other members who shared our views, was denied and we were barred from attending the meeting. This was in total breach of the FIA statutes that require all elected members be given full access to meetings.”

He then made it clear that a legal challenge is on the way, saying that “we have informed the FIA that unless they address the issues we’ve raised, we will be engaging in further legal action,” before concluding that “in a year when the president will either be re-elected or a new one appointed, it is more important than ever to remind the FIA of their responsibilities and continue to hold them to account on behalf of the sport and their members worldwide – and that’s what I intend to do.”

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