http://www.sportsfeatures.com/soccernews/story/48821/exit-may-be-on-the-horizon-as-warner-aims-to-give-fifa-inquiry-a-missSportsFeatures.comPOSTED: June 9th 2011
NewsUpdateExit may be on the horizon as Warner aims to give FIFA inquiry a miss Jack Warner: at a FIFA crossroads / Fotosports.com
KEIR RADNEDGE in La Paz / Sports Features Communications
LA PAZ, Jun 09: Football and FIFA will have seen the last of controversial Jack Warner if the suspended head of CONCACAF goes ahead with his refusal to meet bribery allegations investigators.
Trinidadian Warner and Qatar’s Asian confederation president Mohamed Bin Hammam was banned pending a full ethics committee hearing into whether they colluded to hand out $1m ‘buying’ 25 Caribbean votes in the recent FIFA presidential election.
The storm has overshadowed the early stages of the Central and North American Confederation’s showpiece Gold Cup which is under way in the United States.
Several of the Caribbean federations have issued contradictory statements on whether they believe they were offered bribes or not at a CFU meeting on May 10-11. Warner, who has denied the allegations, has said: "I have not received any summons asking me to speak with them [the investigators] nor do I plan to."
Not that Warner’s statement may be taken with full credibility. Last weekend he reneged on an ealier promise to publish an email damning to FIFA president Sepp Blatter.
Some 18 federations which rejected FIFA’s invitation to give evidence in Miami to a inquiry panel led by former FBI director Freeh have now been offered a venue closer to home in the West Indies.
One of those federations to deny having been bribed is Barbados whose own president, Lisle Austin, is currently suspended from the role of acting president of CONCACAF.
Austin took over after Warner’s suspension and immediately clashed with CONCACAF general secretary Chuch Blazer, the bribery allegations’ whistleblower. Austin has pleaded for FIFA to come to his rescue.
In a statement Austin, whose earlier comments had been issued by Warner’s own media operation, said: “The organization is under attack from within by those who refuse to respect the statutes of Concacaf and have no regard for the rights and interests of the members. I will not stand idly by while this happens and hope, through FIFA intervention or other means, to restore order to CONCACAF as soon as possible.”
CONCACAF has asked FIFA to extend Austin’s ban worldwide until a full hearing on July 13. His full statement: “Earlier this week, I advised FIFA President Sepp Blatter of the actual course of events related to the governance of CONCACAF since 29 May 2011 and urged his intervention to ensure that the Statutes of CONCACAF are honored.
"Any and all guidance from FIFA in resolving the unfortunate situation at CONCACAF is most welcome.
“I am committed to protecting the institution of which I am Acting President and asked Mr. Blatter to recognize my rights in that role. Further uncertainty will only serve to frustrate the goals of transparency and reform not only for CONFACAF but for the sport of association football.
Appointment confirmation
“I succeeded to the position of Acting President of CONCACAF on 29 May 2011, pursuant to Article 29 of the Statutes of CONCACAF. I confirmed this appointment in a letter to Sepp Blatter dated 1 June 2011.
“On 31 May 2011, I exercised my authority as Acting President and terminated the General Secretary of CONCACAF. I convened two meetings of the Emergency Committee of CONCACAF, to ratify and confirm the termination of Mr. Blazer as General Secretary and to revoke his signing authority over the bank accounts of CONCACAF.
“I have also made known, in the spirit of transparency and reform, my intention to direct a forensic audit of CONCACAF’s finances for the five-year period prior to 2011.
“On 2 June 2011, a lawyer from a New York law firm approached me and stated that I had been suspended by the Executive Committee of CONCACAF. That lawyer was not validly acting on behalf of CONCACAF.
“On 3 June 2011, Mr. Alfredo Hawit issued a statement purportedly on behalf of CONCACAF stating that I had been suspended by the Executive Committee and that Mr. Hawit had assumed the position of Acting President. Both of those claims are in utter disregard of the Statutes of CONCACAF.
“Under the Statutes of CONCACAF, the Executive Committee has no authority to ‘suspend’ the President. The President is elected by the Congress. Only the Congress can remove the President, and only FIFA can suspend the President of CONCACAF.
“These actions and additional statements questioning my leadership are being engineered by a faction of CONCACAF attempting to unlawfully seize control. The actions and statements of these persons are beyond their authority and are neither the actions of, nor binding upon, CONCACAF. As Acting President I will take all appropriate steps to remedy these actions.
“The organization is under attack from within by those who refuse to respect the Statutes of CONCACAF and have no regard for the rights and interests of the Members at large. I will not stand idly by while this happens and hope, through FIFA intervention or other means, to restore order to CONCACAF as soon as possible.”
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Keywords · FIFA · CONCCACAF · Warner · Blatter ·
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Keir Radnedge (kradnedge@sportsfeatures.com)
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