Ramesh Ramdhan, the suspended general secretary of the T&T Football Association is calling on Robert Hadad, chairman of the FIFA-appointed Normalisation Committee to pay back monies he credited from three companies for the interest of football.
Ramdhan is also set to take legal action against Hadad for wrongful suspension when the Normalisation Committee replaced the embattled football association initially in March of this year.
Ramdhan told Guardian Media Sports on Monday that credit was taken to pay the salaries of the staff of the T&TFA in February; pay to cover airfare and accommodation for the country's Under-20 Women's team to compete at the CONCACAF Championship in the Dominican Republic earlier this year, and for insurance for the controversial Home of Football earlier this year because of his good name.
Ramdhan explained that the normalization committee chairman has been attempting to determine the veracity of his claims for about eight months now.
"At the 11th hour, before that team flew out to the Dominican Republic, we could not get travel arrangements finalized for them because we didn't have the money. A friend of mine, a travel agent friend of mine, I begged her, because we had already paid for a two-week camp which FIFA paid for direct to the supplier of that camp, two weeks before the competition. Had I not gotten those tickets for those players, that camp would not have come off and money would have been wasted and we would not have been able to participate at that u-20 Championship," Ramdhan explained.
He said: "At the last minute, the Friday night all those tickets were cut without payment, and that was a goodwill credit given to the TTFA because of me, now I am being asked about that payment and the information on this was sent to Hadad since in April, and he has to verify the veracity of that credit, saying as soon as he does that and he gets the money he will pay. The year has been completed and now I am being asked about that bill which is approximately US$35,000, that someone put out on behalf of the T&TFA through me because of a personal relationship, and to date that cannot be resolved."
However, Hadad responded, "The TTFA owes significant amounts to numerous creditors based on decisions taken by previous administrations. The Normalization Committee (NC) was installed to address the debt situation but we have to assess the legitimacy and transparency of all contracts. Having been reinstated in November, the NC will be meeting to negotiate with many of the valid creditors very soon."
T&T Women's team performed with credit, reaching the quarterfinal of the Championship where they were beaten 4-0 by giants Mexico. Before that the u-20 women, after being hammered 0-7 by Haiti, (T&T) thrashed St Kitts/Nevis 6-0; and shut-out the Cayman Islands 2-0, before prevailing over Puerto Rico 5-4 on penalties following a 3-3 tie in the round of 16.
Hadad said, "It's important to remember that the organization is insolvent so any decision taken has to have a holistic appreciation of all aspects of the situation.
In addition, the Home of Football is still being used as a Covid-19 step-down facility and has all the requisite coverages."
In February, Ramdhan, a former T&T and FIFA referee were also instrumental in ensuring that the staff of the football association was paid when he borrowed TT$99,405.08. to cover wages from a friend.
Apart from these the issues highlighted that needed payment, Hadad has the responsibility of stabilizing the T&TFA which has been burdened with a debt of between $60 million to $80 million presently.