Even as Ramesh Ramdhan, the T&T referee who officiated at the 1998 World Cup, was launching his campaign for presidency for the T&T Football Association (TTFA) at the annual general meeting and election of officers at Trotters Bar, Maraval Road, yesterday, clubs in Central Trinidad were contemplating writing the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (Concacaf) to overturn a decision for Ramdhan to be their choice for that election.
The clubs have been clamouring for Central president Bryan Layne to call elections for the past months, as they claim he is reluctant to name a date for Central Zone elections for fear of loosing. But yesterday Shymdeo Gosine, managing director of Harlem Strikers, said a date of November 25 was called for the elections, but still it failed to satisfy the clubs as Ramdhan, who is not their choice, will still represent them at the TTFA presidency election.
Ramdhan got the nod from the executives of the CFA overwhelmingly without the knowledge of the clubs and yesterday representatives of the nine clubs in the top flight Central association league continued their call for the former T&T referee to be removed and the clubs under the new executives, which will be after the elections, be the ones to nominate the choice for the central zone.
Gosine told the Guardian yesterday: “As it is now, Ramdhan is still the one because the executive of the CFA took too long to call the elections. However we at the clubs level will not be accepting that and will call on the Concacaf or Fifa to get involved to ensure that democracy in football prevails.
“We will do anything necessary to have Ramdhan removed, whether he is voted as the TTFA president or not.”
Elections in the different zones were suspended earlier this year, pending the amendments to their constitutions which is suppose to be in line with that of the parent TTFA. After the constitutions have been amended it will go for approval by a Constitution Committee of the TTFA.
It is understood that all the zones such as the Northern Football Association (NFA), Central Football Association (CFA), Tobago Football Association (TFA), Southern Football Association (SFA), Eastern Football Association (EFA) and the Eastern Counties Football Union (ECFU) had completed their amend ments and sent them for approval.
However Guardian was reliably informed that minor changes had to be made since the TTFA represents a wider base in the sport which meant the constitutions of the regional associations had to scaled down to suit their mandate.
A representative of the Northern FA explained that following the approval of the TTFA constitution on July 12, a meeting of the different zones was held recently to rectify the problems with their constitutions and from this meeting it was agreed that Southern FA officials would make the necessary amendments to their constitution and send it for approval by the TTFA constitution committee.
It was also agreed that if that constitution is approved then all the other zones would just use that as the accepted model to correct their constitutions. Gosine yesterday explained that this new development was not communicated to the central clubs.
However he told the Guardian that their main concern is that if the executives were the ones to chose Ramdhan, then why weren’t the clubs called to a meeting, if their members make up the executive.
“If members from the different clubs were called to vote for Ramdhan then show us the minutes of the meeting,” Gosine said.
Gosine promised that clubs will not stop until the right thing is done and there is democracy within the management of the sport in Central.