THE process leading to fresh Trinidad and Tobago Football Association (TTFA) elections in three months’ time is on course, and the FIFA-imposed Normalisation Committee should demit office by March 17, without a further extension of its term of office.
Yesterday, both TTFA general secretary Amiel Mohammed and TTFA board member Osmond Downer confirmed that the process to hand over power to the TTFA is on course, and nearing completion.
However, another TTFA board member, Veterans Football Foundation president Selby Browne, has called on the TTFA general secretary to give a firm date for an upcoming TTFA extraordinary general meeting and its annual general meeting. The EGM is required for approval of the TTFA constitution by the members of the TTFA, while the purpose of the AGM is to conduct elections for a new TTFA executive.
After near four years in charge of football in Trinidad and Tobago, the management committee appointed by world football’s governing body, FIFA, is set to demit office in March as mandated.
FIFA took control of the TTFA’s affairs on March 17, 2020, when dissolving the TTFA executive headed by then president Williams Wallace, and imposing its own Normalisation Committee (NC) led by local businessman Richard Hadad.
FIFA justified its action by explaining that having accumulated an over $50 million debt, the Association was in danger of insolvency. The NC has since dissolved the TTFA’s huge historic debt and has just two further mandates: the amendment of the TTFA’s constitution, and the calling of fresh TTFA executive elections.
Contacted yesterday, both Mohammed, and Football Referees Association president Downer, indicated that, although slightly delayed, the process is on course for completion.
Following a meeting at the National Academy for the Performing Arts (NAPA), Port of Spain, Mohammed had in July 2023, issued TTFA members with a set agenda for the completing of the NC’s mandate.
The final two items on the agenda read: (1) Convening of General Meeting to approve statutes in December 2023 and, (2) convening of TTFA elections in mid-March 2024). The NC also added: “Kindly note that the above points in the time line are subject to be altered, pending the fulfilment of the respective prior point”.
Mohammed suggested that the process is being followed. “We informed all the members of a particular time line which had been circulated to everyone,” he stated. “Everyone, probably barring one or two individuals, have been working with that time line.”
Mohammed continued: “It’s going according to the time line. We would have circulated the draft statutes for their review. They would have been given some time to give feedback, and now it about going through that feedback. The statutes would have to be approved by the general membership (via the EGM) and once the statutes are approved, then elections will be called before the end of March.”
Downer concurred with Mohammed that things were on course. He further explained that the staging of the EGM had only been pushed back a month and is now scheduled for January, 2024. “They have to have the extraordinary general meeting this month and elections by the end of March but, it is on schedule,” Downer added.
He also gave the path the process was proceeding along. “The Normalisation Committee sent out a draft and they gave the members up to the December 31 to submit any comments etc. Now that that has been done, they are supposed to send it back to FIFA, who in turn, will send it back to us, and an extraordinary general meeting (will be) held this month (January) to go into the changes,” Downer explained.
Meanwhile, Browne wrote Mohammed requesting specific dates in a letter headed: “Notice to the TTFA General Secretary to immediately circulate the date for both the TTFA EGM and AGM before January 28th 2024.”
Browne’s correspondence states, “As you are aware, the date of January 28, 2024, is the deadline for Notice of the TTFA AGM, should the already extended two-year appointed term of the Normalisation Committee come to an end on March 30, 2024.”
SOURCE: T&T Express