Chung Mong-joon has launched a fresh attack on FIFA's Ethics Committee and president Sepp Blatter, confirming his intention to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) after he was given a six-year ban from football activity.
On Thursday, the presidential candidate hit out at the Ethics Committee - branding it Blatter's "hitman" after he was sanctioned over a number of infringements during the bidding process for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.
Chung issued a new statement on Friday, stating he would be launching an appeal to CAS over his punishment next week.
Blatter, UEFA president Michel Platini and former FIFA general secretary Jerome Valcke were handed initial 90-day bans for various alleged misdemeanours and all three - like Chung - deny any wrongdoing.
Chung said: "This shows that the investigation into my alleged violations has been fundamentally flawed and was merely an attempt to sabotage my candidacy for FIFA president.
"The Ethics Committee is sanctioning me not for my alleged violations of 'vote-trading,' 'the appearance of offering a benefit,' and personal donations but for my criticisms of the Ethics Committee and my 'attitude' during the investigation.
"There is no clearer proof than this that the whole investigation has been a political ploy from the beginning.
"Through the Garcia Report that was made public in November 2014, FIFA had cleared the Korea World Cup Bid Committee of any wrongdoing, stating that the 'potentially problematic facts and circumstances identified by the Report regarding the Korea 2022 bid were, all in all, not suited to compromise the integrity of the FIFA World Cup 2018/2022 bidding process as a whole'.
"There is a fundamental procedural flaw in the Ethics Committee’s decision to sanction me. If Mr. Hans-Joachim Eckert, as head of the Chairman of Adjudicatory Chamber, was claiming to be the victim of defamation by me, he should have recused himself from presiding over my case. The fact that he was allowed to render a decision was a clear breach of the legal process.
"This decision by the Ethics Committee has completely undermined the legitimacy and fairness of the next FIFA presidential election.
"I will mobilize all legal means available to expose the injustice of this decision by the Ethics Committee while continuing to do my utmost to reform FIFA. This includes a formal request to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) next week.
"As I mentioned in London recently, I plan to sue Mr. Blatter for the VISA-MasterCard fraud case and for getting paid by FIFA without the approval of the Executive Committee which amounts to embezzlement. The Ethics Committee will also be the subject of my legal actions for damaging my reputation."
