Drogba to sue UK paper over claims about his charity
Thu Apr 14, 2016 02:52:pm Sports
3.1K By sosa hills
Footballer Didier Drogba said Thursday he would take legal action against Britain's Daily Mail newspaper after it published allegations that most of the money raised by his charity in Britain was not going to good causes.
The newspaper reported that that a high-profile charity ball arranged by the charity in 2010 and attended by the likes of David Beckham, Pele and Roger Federer made a loss of more than 70,000.
But in a statement released on his Twitter page, Drogba denied the allegations, saying: "Despite sending legal letters and 67 pages worth of documents advising the Daily Mail that their information was factually incorrect and libellous, they have decided to ignore the facts so I am issuing legal proceedings against them today.
"The Daily Mail by such irresponsible journalism are jeopardizing the lives of many thousands of African children. The effect on these kids in need of healthcare and education is unimaginable.
"They have already caused an untold amount of damage by contacting all of my sponsors, my colleagues, and many of my friends who generously helped the Foundation with donations, and put doubts in their mind about whether to continue to support us in the future."
David Holdsworth, the chief operating officer at the Charity Commission, said: "The commission has serious regulatory concerns about a number of compliance issues raised and have contacted the charity to seek an urgent response.
"In particular, the commission has concerns about the administration of the charity and the oversight provided by trustees, all of whom appear to live abroad, as well as allegations that the charity has provided misleading information to donors and the public.
"Further, the charity has raised and accumulated significant sums of money that have not yet been spent and further information is required over the plans to spend those funds.
"All these issues merit further investigation by the commission."
The newspaper reported that that a high-profile charity ball arranged by the charity in 2010 and attended by the likes of David Beckham, Pele and Roger Federer made a loss of more than 70,000.
But in a statement released on his Twitter page, Drogba denied the allegations, saying: "Despite sending legal letters and 67 pages worth of documents advising the Daily Mail that their information was factually incorrect and libellous, they have decided to ignore the facts so I am issuing legal proceedings against them today.
"The Daily Mail by such irresponsible journalism are jeopardizing the lives of many thousands of African children. The effect on these kids in need of healthcare and education is unimaginable.
"They have already caused an untold amount of damage by contacting all of my sponsors, my colleagues, and many of my friends who generously helped the Foundation with donations, and put doubts in their mind about whether to continue to support us in the future."
David Holdsworth, the chief operating officer at the Charity Commission, said: "The commission has serious regulatory concerns about a number of compliance issues raised and have contacted the charity to seek an urgent response.
"In particular, the commission has concerns about the administration of the charity and the oversight provided by trustees, all of whom appear to live abroad, as well as allegations that the charity has provided misleading information to donors and the public.
"Further, the charity has raised and accumulated significant sums of money that have not yet been spent and further information is required over the plans to spend those funds.
"All these issues merit further investigation by the commission."
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