WALTER ALIBEY
The Central Football Association (CFA), being led by Shymdeo Gosine is rejecting Samuel Saunders as the zone’s representative on the Board of Directors of the T&T Football Association.
The CFA in a strongly worded letter to the TTFA on January 3, made it clear that Saunders has breached the association’s constitution (TTFA) by not attending four consecutive meetings. Yesterday, the CFA’s General Secretary Clynt Taylor said his association intends to propose major amendments to the constitution of the TTFA which will allow Regional Associations the right to select its own representative to the football association’s board.
Their proposal will also enable the six regional associations-Northern Football Association (NFA), Southern Football Association (SFA), Central Football Association (CFA), Eastern Football Association (EFA), Tobago Football Association (TFA) and the Eastern Counties Football Union (ECFU) to have their representative immediately accepted as a TTFA member, in the event of a change.
In the constitution, if there is a change in the representative by the regional association, that person will be considered an observer until an AGM is held to approve their membership. Their proposal will again be raised at the next TTFA Congress next year.
Taylor, who was a candidate for the hotly contested race for presidency of the TTFA in 2015, told the Sunday Guardian that Saunders has not represented his association in anyway. “He has done absolutely nothing for the CFA. He does not attend meetings although we have been invited on many ocassions and he has not responded to their messages to chart a way forward for the CFA” Taylor explained yesterday.
According to Taylor, Saunders who is an Attorney by profession, only met with the CFA when his executives made it public they wanted to remove him. The CFA has already chosen James Toussaint as the replacement for Saunders but Taylor said this is being blocked by the TTFA.
In its letter to the TTFA, Taylor pointed to the TTFA Congress on November 26, 2016 at Naparima Boys College, San Fernando, in which it was re-iterated that TTFA Board members who were absent for three or more consecutive meetings were automatically removed as Board members as stated by the constitution of the TTFA. This call was also reinforced by ex referee Osmond Downer.
Saunders who has failed to attend meetings on May 18, June 15, July 20 and August 17, 2016 automatically disqualifies himself from board membership, a call that was also made by the CFA at that congress.
Contacted, Joanne Salazar, the TTFA’s 3rd vice president said the CFA has been incorrect in their assumption that Saunders missed four meetings consecutively. She noted the meeting that was scheduled for June 15 was not held.
“No member to date, has missed four meetings” Salazar said and directed the CFA to its own constitiution, which she said should be equipped with the necessary steps to discipline or take actions against its members.
The Guardian also learnt that the NFA, under new president Anthony Harford, has been experiencuing similar problems with its representative.