Bin Hammam pleads for Asian support

Mohamed bin Hammam takes questions from the press before his ban.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• AFC president Mohamed bin Hammam vows to clear his name
• Releases statement on his web site
• Calls FIFA's decision to ban him from football for life "unjustified"
• In separate interview compares Sepp Blatter to "a dictator"

(CNN) -- Mohamed bin Hammam has vowed to clear his name following FIFA's decision to ban him from all football activities for life whilst refusing to resign his position as president of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).
The one-time rival to Sepp Blatter pulled out of FIFA's presidential election in June after being accused of bribery in the run-up to the vote, leaving Blatter to secure a fourth term unopposed.
The subsequent FIFA Ethics Committee investigation found him guilty of offering cash bribes for votes, charges he has strenuously denied whilst maintaining that the investigation stemmed from his decision to run for the presidency.
"The unjustified decision made by [the] FIFA ethics committee... was a result and direct consequence to my decision to contest for [the] FIFA presidency," Bin Hammam said in a statement on his official web site.

I'm telling you again, I did not give any cash gifts to anybody but these are normal
--Mohamed bin Hammam

"I have all the right to fight against this shameful decision until I clear my name. It may take some time before I go through the appeals committee of FIFA and Court of Arbitration in Sport (CAS)... that means I will not render my resignation as AFC president."
Bin Hammam had been accused of illicitly plotting with Jack Warner, the former head of the association in charge of football in North and Central America and the Caribbean, to help secure votes in the region ahead of the presidential vote.

The investigation against Warner was dropped -- under the presumption of innocence -- after the Trinidadian resigned in June.
But the 62-year-old head of the AFC, who played a key role in controversially securing the 2022 World Cup for his native Qatar, has vowed to fight on to clear his name and urged Asia's football family to back him.
"My candidacy for [the] FIFA President was something that has been resisted by others by all means who pretend that they [are] supporting democracy although they have no democracy principles," he said.
"I am appealing for your understanding and appreciation for my cause...and looking forward to your support to me until I prove my innocence."
In a separate development Monday Bin Hammam also compared Blatter to a "dictator" who was out to get revenge.

"When you are in a position to lead, the leader usually doesn't revenge," he told Sky News, referring to his earlier accusation that the corruption allegations were politically motivated and rooted in his decision to run for the FIFA presidency.

"This is actually the act of the dictators, and you have witnessed through history the dictators, when they think this or that person is a prominent one to replace him, the first thing they do is execute him."

He also defended gift giving within FIFA, differentiating the practice from that of paying bribes.

"This is a normal, normal, normal practice," he said. "I'm telling you again, I did not give any cash gifts to anybody but