AGM postponed due to non-compliant TTFA

The Trinidad and Tobago Football Asscoaition (TTFA), after chastising the majority of its members for not becoming compliant, yesterday was forced to concede that it was not acting in compliance with its own constitution and had to postpone its Annual General Meeting (AGM) at the National Cycling Centre, Couva.

The AGM, which was supposed to take place yesterday, will now be held on December 9 after TTFA members deemed its hosting unconstitutional.

The situation arose after the TTFA invited only 16 of its 49 members to actively partake in the AGM as the others were not compliant according to FIFA mandate and therefore could attend but not vote. The issue of compliance was raised at a press conference on Tuesday by David John-Williams, president of TTFA, who said extensions have been given to members repeatedly without members taking any action to rectify their situation.

Selby Browne, head of the Veteran Footballers Foundation of Trinidad and Tobago, told Newsday yesterday’s AGM postponement was not surprising.

Osmond Downer, vice president of the Trinidad and Tobago Football Referees Association, immediately put a stop to yesterday’s AGM, citing Section 10 of the constitution that the TTFA general secretary had not sent its financial statements to all members as the constitution stipulates.

Despite the documents being furnished to members present yesterday, they pointed out it was “voluminous” and needed more time to properly peruse it and expound on its contents.

“Unless you have sent the notices to all members (prior to the AGM you can’t proceed)...This thing about compliance is a ruse,” Browne told Newsday yesterday.

A vote was subsequently taken on the postponement of the AGM with 17 voting yes, four against and 14 abstaining.

A motion was passed, though, for a new deadline of March 31, 2018, for TTFA members to become compliant.

Browne said, “All members are required to become compliant but since November 29, 2015 when he (John-Williams) was the successful candidate, the mandate was all members become complaint, and all members want to become compliant. A moratorium was given to go ahead and vote and make sure you become compliant by 12th of January 2017, at the point of that deadline, several members were not compliant.

“At a meeting on July 5, the members by motion agreed that all members must become compliant by the 30th of September, (we said) let us work together to get this thing done but there was no penalty attached to it. Lo and behold, John-Williams chose to declare on his accord that only nine members were compliant and only those nine members could participate in the AGM and vote. Under no circumstances does the president have the power to do so under the constitution.”