PORT OF SPAIN: The embattlde Trinidad & Tobago Football Federation has laid the blame for its financial chaos squarely at the door of its former consultant Jack Warner, the country’s Minister of Works.
Warner, who quit all football last summer including senior positions in FIFA, CONCACAF and the Caribbean Football Union after bribery allegations, has been ordered by the High Court in Port of Spain to produce accounts concerning the country’s national team appearance at the 2006 World Cup finals.
In the meantime, the federation has seen goods seized from its offices by bailiffs acting on behalf of World Cup players chasing down pay and bonuses for those finals.
Further controversy has arisen over the disappearance of most of a $250,000 aid grant from $500,000 from the South Korean federation which Warner was supposed to have channelled to the Haiti federation after the earthquake there. The FHF claims it has received only $60,000.
The TTFF said: “The TTFF realises the final responsibility with any account in its name lies with us but confesses that it surrended its authority to Mr Warner. We never questioned his authority or actions and are now in a position of despair as we are starved of funds by FIFA until full disclosure which we are unable to provide without Mr Warner’s input.
“Sadly Mr Warner seems disinclined to comply with our repeated requests.”
Warner suggested he was the victim of conspiracies among both FIFA and domestic political interviews.
His $50,000-a-year FIFA pension has been frozen pending a resolution of all the issues.