Today's fiery w/cup press conference.
By: Lasana Liburd.
Today's press conference officially launched Trinidad and Tobago's 2014 World Cup campaign--just one month from our first qualifying game.
Notwithstanding the late start, All Sports chairman Anthony Harford notably has taken the management of the campaign away from the TTFF at the football body's request. Harford set up an independent committee that consists of two members of the private sector, a Sport Ministry representative, a TTFF representative and himself as Chairman.
Not much of a vote of confidence there for president Oliver Camps and the absent general secretary Richard Groden--the latter was absent because he didn't consider himself ready to answer questions regarding FIFA's decision to launch an Ethics probe into his conduct.
More to the reason that I am writing this note, I had brief questions from the TTFF President and Sport Minister Anil Roberts that may or not be covered by the rest of the press.
My question to Camps was (roughly): "The TTFF General Secretary is under investigation by FIFA and you are before the courts for cheating your own employees, the 2006 World Cup team, out of their bonuses; do you think the current TTFF Executive is an asset or liability to national football and why?"
His response was that he is an asset because of his "vision". He didn't go into details.
I then asked (roughly): "You have handed over responsibility to run the TTFF's W/Cup campaign to a committee that is drawn up and yet the TTFF hasn't even named its representative on the committee. Who is the representative?"
He said they hadn't decided yet. I asked when would they decide. He said he didn't know.
Simlarly, I had two questions for the Sport Minister. They were:
When did your concern over accountability begin and how is it you have only voiced such concerns after te departure of your Cabinet colleague Jack Warner?
And, As a matter of integrity, do you admit to intentionally trying to mislead the population when, during the last general election campaign, you claimed that the World Cup players had no right to any bonuses as they did not score a goal in Germany?
Minister Roberts had other ideas.
He said he would not answer a question until I answered his. He said that last year on the Morning Edition, I criticised the Sport Minister for pouring millions into an organisation (football) with no transparency. Then last week, I wrote that the TTFF was bankrupt.
He wanted to know which statement was true and if I would "admit" in front of everyone that I was a liar.
I responded by asking whether the Sport Ministry put any money into national football last year and he said they only paid for hotel stay of a national youth team in Colombia.
I followed up by asking whether the Sport Ministry had paid any players or coaches last year for the TTFF.
Instead of answering, he called me a liar, refused all questions and returned to his seat.
My point, rightly or wrongly, is that if you pay an organisation's bills and its employees is that not providing funding? And if not, it is surely a difference of opinion.
Furthermore, I failed to see how the TTFF receiving money one year and being bankrupt the next was a contradictory statement. But I take it the Minister doesn't feel comfortable answering my questions.
My closing question to the head table was thus:
"The national players and coaches who participated in last year's Caribbean Cup still have not been paid, is there anyone here who cares?"
The silence was deafening.
