Jihad Jarisha, former member of the referees committee, sparked a major surprise with his remarks about the recent period in which he held the post, revealing the truth about Ahmed Mujahid, former head of the tripartite committee managing the Football Association, intervening in refereeing.
Jihad Jarisha served as a member of the previous referees committee alongside Sayed Murad and Haitham Baraka, under the chairmanship of Colombian Oscar Ruiz, while Wajih Ahmed held the position of vice chairman.
Jihad Jarisha’s statements
Jihad Jarisha, former member of the referees committee, opened his remarks on the “Modern mti” channel by saying: “Ahmed Mujahid intervening in the referees committee’s work? Possible.. For example, there are two members on the committee whom he insists must remain, whether on the current or previous committee, and I don’t know why.”
Jarisha added during his television interview: “The appointment of the duo (Wajih Ahmed and Azab Hajjaj) came about through Ahmed Mujahid’s intervention? To a large extent, and I don’t know why.. As for me, no one was able to interfere in my work.”
He continued: “Ahmed Mujahid did not intervene in my work in an obvious way, but he called me once and said, ‘If you think you’re going to remove Wajih and Azab, they won’t be removed as long as Hani Abu Rida is president of the Football Association,’ and I told him I was not a party to any such matter.”
He concluded: “Ahmed Mujahid has my full respect and appreciation, but I have never allowed, and will never allow, any person to interfere in my work, because refereeing requires freedom and prohibits the imposition of specific names or choices, and that has not happened and will not happen with me.”