Caught off guard
Trinidad and Tobago Football Association president Raymond Tim Kee awoke in Zurich, Switzerland, in the wee hours of yesterday morning to the news that some of his CONCACAF colleagues, including president Jeffrey Webb, had been arrested on racketeering, conspiracy and corruption charges.
Following United States Government indictments, Swiss police made dawn raids at the Baur au Lac hotel in Zurich, where Fifa officials are staying ahead of Friday's FIFA presidential election. Tim Kee, president of the Trinidad and Tobago Football Association and a sitting member of two FIFA committees was staying at the CONCACAF Hotel in Zurich.
Yesterday, former FIFA vice-president Jack Warner was also arrested in Port of Spain on similar charges, and was up to press-time fighting to secure bail in the amount of $2.5 million. A day before, Tim Kee was at the Baur au Lac hotel having discussions with the Prince of Jordan, a country Trinidad and Tobago will play next month in a friendly international.
"My reaction was one of shock and surprise about how it came about," Tim Kee said of the action in Zurich. "To be awakened at 2 a.m. and told that police had taken some of our people. But, it was not unexpected, because we knew that investigations were ongoing."
Following yesterday's events, Tim Kee reported that tomorrow's election in which incumbent Sepp Blatter - is seeking another term as head of the governing body for world football - will proceed. But he has a gut feeling that yesterday's events might affect the outcome of the contest between Blatter and underdog Prince Ali bin al-Hussein of Jordan. Concerning CONCACAF and the Caribbean, Tim Kee said he will watch proceedings closely.
"Trinidad and Tobago is not affected in terms of our participation in the Gold Cup or anything so, but with indictments brought against the president, it will be interesting to see how the Caribbean will be affected and the kind of treatment the Caribbean is given, if there were to be changes at the helm (of CONCACAF)," Tim Kee added.
Yesterday, the TTFA issued a statement expressing its concern at the turn of events.
"The Trinidad and Tobago Football Association (TTFA) is observing, with concern, the events that took place this morning in Zurich, Switzerland. We acknowledge this investigation and hope it will lead to improved governance in the world's most popular sport of which our organisation is actively involved.
The TTFA will give this ongoing investigation the respect it deserves and, as a result, will refrain from making further statements on the ongoing investigation at this time."
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Tim Kee stunned by FIFA officials’ arrest
T&T Newsday Reports.
PRESIDENT OF the Trinidad and Tobago Football Association (TTFA), Raymond Tim Kee, has expressed his surprise over yesterday morning’s arrests of a number of FIFA officials, including Concacaf president Jeffrey Webb, by Switzerland law enforcement personnel, and the indictment of former football honcho Jack Warner by the United States Department of Justice.
The US Department of Justice yesterday revealed a 47-count indictment against the officials, alleging an elaborate 24-year scheme involving racketeering, wire fraud and money laundering conspiracies.
Tim Kee and Webb were in Zurich, Switzerland ahead of tomorrow’s FIFA presidential elections.
In a radio interview yesterday (Power 102 FM), Tim Kee, who has been the TTFA boss since November 2012, said, “one thing I can say is that those legal folks have been quite professional, and there is nothing to suggest that anything was happening.”
Tim Kee, who is also the Mayor of Port-of-Spain and a Guardian Life insurance executive, continued, “that was kept extremely quiet and private. So there was no expectation. Everybody was found in a state of shock.
The TTFA president admitted, “(on Tuesday) night I was talking to the president of Concacaf, and some of his vice-presidents. There was nothing in their demeanour or what was said to suggest any feeling or suspicion that something was in the making.”
Warner served as Concacaf and CFU (Caribbean Football Union) president, and FIFA vice-president, for 21 years, as well as special adviser of the then TTFF (Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation) until he left his football positions in June 20 2011, in the wake of a FIFA corruption investigation.
Meanwhile, the TTFA will be staying silent, with regards to any public pronouncements, on the latest controversy to hit FIFA.
“We acknowledge this investigation and hope it will lead to improved governance in the world’s most popular sport of which our organisation is actively involved,” said the TTFA in a media release.
“The TTFA will give this ongoing investigation the respect it deserves and, as a result, will refrain from making further statements on the ongoing investigation at this time.”
The TTFA, according to the media release, “wishes to reiterate that it is currently involved in a process of reforming and re-organising its governance, organisational structures, and practices in striving to meet ever-increasing expectations of transparency, accountability and performance from a wide range of stakeholders.”