Thai clubs to learn of voting rights on Monday
Admiral Surawut Maharom, chairman of Thai football's Fifa-appointed normalisation committee, said a decision on the number of clubs eligible to vote in the Football Association of Thailand's re-arranged presidential election would be made at a meeting on Monday.
Precisely which clubs had voting entitlements has been the biggest bone of contention since the Thai FA vote on October 17 was postponed when Fifa's ethics committee banned the incumbent Worawi Makudi from football-related activities for 90 days.
Surawut yesterday dismissed suggestions that world football's governing body wanted his committee to stick to the figure of 72 clubs used in the previous poll.
"Fifa did not say that we needed to abide by the previous [electoral] rules. However, they would like us to consider whether the regulations are appropriate and transparent. If not, we can amend them.
"We have referred the issue to the SAT [Sports Authority of Thailand, as the governing body] who will consider whether any change to the figure [of 72] can be made.
"On Monday, we should reach a conclusion on the number of voting members, particularly the figure of 18 from [second-tier] League One and 30 from [third-tier] regional divisions. We are asking for advice from the SAT. If the current method is not transparent, we need to find a new way to select representatives eligible to vote from those clubs, particularly in the five regional zones.
"If that proves necessary, we will explain the move in advance, to make sure no one is at a disadvantage. In the event that the SAT sees nothing wrong, we will retain the same figure," Surawut said.