A decision is to be made in Kigali today that is as forward-looking as it is controversial: Will the FIA president evade some controls in the future?
FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem will find out this Friday whether the controversial changes to the statutes of the motorsport association have been approved. The FIA General Assembly is meeting today before the FIA Gala in Kigali, Rwanda, and will vote on the proposals.
The proposed changes would restrict the ethics and audit committees and transfer the responsibilities of the compliance officer to the FIA president and the president of the FIA Senate instead of to the Senate itself.
It would also remove the power of the audit committee to independently investigate financial matters.
This comes after Sulayem was investigated – and cleared – by the ethics committee earlier this year after an informant claimed he had influenced the outcome of the 2023 Saudi Arabia Grand Prix.
The details, first revealed by the BBC, also state that the audit committee no longer needs to be involved in the closing of the FIA’s accounts and that it is “up to the President of the Senate to consult the committee if he deems it necessary”.
Some key figures in Formula One have voiced their concerns about the changes, which would ultimately weaken independent scrutiny within the organization and alter the way in which the FIA’s leadership is held to account.
Former BAR team boss David Richards, who represents Britain on the World Council, told the BBC he was “concerned that large organizations around the world would refuse to work with the FIA if it does not reflect the highest standards of governance, as befits our sport”.
Richards also said he hoped the FIA would reconsider its plans to change its governance structure.
Ahead of today’s decision, the head of the Austrian motorsports federation also admits to being “saddened” by the proposed changes: Oliver Schmerold, the chairman of the OAMTC, says it is “not good governance” and “not good in terms of control and balance.”
Although he has communicated his reservations about the governance changes to Sulayem, he expects his views to fall on deaf ears and the changes to be approved by the member clubs on Friday, Schmerold said – a blow to opponents of the changes.
If the proposals are given the green light, it would mean a shift of power in favor of FIA president and Senate president Carmelo Sanz De Barros.
