It was during the halftime break of the Tobago United vs Joe Public game on May 5, 2007 that I had a chance encounter with Aminu Erinle. He was suspicious, cautious and also deeply frustrated as he responded to my inquiry about his status with the team. His concise response was that he no longer plays for the team, and doesn’t have an interest in playing in this country anymore. He wanted to know who I was, and what fuelled my interest in his dilemma. After satisfying his concerns, he agreed to bring his counterpart along to explain their current and ongoing crisis.
Olatunji Quadri, a quite imposing figure was introduced to me, and Aminu set about outlining how they arrived at their very tenuous position. He recounted that they arrived in the country in December, 2005, having being invited by Mr. Peter Granville, and bearing the letter outlining the terms that they would be offered. Things didn’t go smoothly at first, but they persevered. Work permits were never obtained for them. They took the letter to an immigration officer who granted them an extension until December 31, 2006. They were desperate to show their worth, and were both registered in the Pro League as Tobago United players. The housing was of low quality, and the wages were to begin at $2000TT/month. Their season was not rewarding in terms of results, however their contribution towards moving the team forward was rewarded with a letter of intent from the boss to extend their contract.
Things however, took a turn for the worse, as the December 31st deadline approached, and Tobago United had not made any effort to sort out the status with the immigration authorities. As in the previous year, they both met with an Immigration officer to see if they could do anything on their own. The officer contacted Tobago United, and was told that they would deal with the matter. It dragged on into the New Year, when sometime in January when the players visited the Immigration department, their passports were seized. They had worked without a work permit and were in violation of their status and could be deported. There was also the matter of outstanding reimbursables for travel and travel related expenditures that was yet unresolved. This, they insisted was agreed to, and they presented all receipts upon arrival into the country. In their opinion, Tobago United is pursuing deportation as the solution to the crisis, since they were told by Mr. Granville that National Security would pay their return fare.
They have since sought the assistance of the Nigerian High Commission who was influential in getting Mr Claude Benoit, chairman of the club, to indicate to the immigration authorities that the matter would be dealt with in the coming week. That was now February. He never did. Tobago United continued to pay the guys $1000 fortnightly, and still does today. This payment is in accordance with last season’s contract, however, it has never been on time and there’s always a problem collecting it. Mr. Skeene’s assistance was also sought as well as the local press and the Minister of Local Government, Mr. Rennie Dumas - a huge supporter of Tobago United, all to no avail. It was quite disturbing that Mr. Skeene had not contacted these gentlemen, nor conducted hearings leading to sanctions for what appears to be a blatant violation of professional conduct by the Tobago outfit. The players made the trip to Trinidad to meet with Mr. Skeene, but his secretary Ms. Julia Baptiste received the information package in his absence. No acknowledgement has been received from Mr. Skeene, nor has their follow-up calls been returned.
I asked Olatunji about his appearance on the team's roster for the North East Stars game that was played on April 14, 2007, and he said that the coach is pressuring him to play, but he won’t as it would further jeopardize his situation. He also offered that an unnamed Trinidad team had sought his services, but lost interest when he informed them of his ongoing situation. Aminu and Olatunji desire to be released by Tobago United, reimbursed for their travel from Nigeria to Tobago, and provided with return tickets to Nigeria. To this end, they have sought assistance from anyone they believe can help. They’ve also called on The Ministry of Sports and Assistant Commissioner Rodvan Bastien – top law enforcement officer in Tobago. They are also now in the process of reaching out to FIFA vice president Austin “Jack” Warner.
I have made several futile attempts to contact Mr. Granville. The telephone and email messages weren’t returned, neither was the message relayed to him by his close family relation. Like the players, Ms. Baptiste took the message for Mr. Skeene. A follow-up call was made to Mr. Skeene’s office and it could not be ascertained whether or not he intended to respond. He has not to date.
Players have shared further stories about Tobago United ranging from shady transfer and registration practices to deducting huge portions of the players’ already small wages. Part time players under a financially weak organisation with poor public relations, is a recipe for disaster. This may in some measure explain the perpetual failures of Tobago United. This crisis can also present some nightmares for the Pro League as they chart the way forward. My hope is that their inaction doesn’t undermine the gains made by the League.