The Georgetown Football Association (GFA) followed up its request to be duly recognized by the Guyana Football Federation with a call for the postponement of the parent body’s elections on April 16.
The GFA wants the postponement so that an opportunity for “all associations and affiliates of the GFF to become regularised, duly constituted and thus eligible to participate meaningfully in this important decision-making process,” can be made available.
In a letter written by GFA’s Secretary Christopher Matthias, the association is asking for “the desired transparency which should be the enveloping environment in which the 2011 Congress be conducted.”
That apart, the GFA hopes that the local governing body honours the requirements of its constitution.
In the first letter of March 28 by the GFA it informed the GFF that the General Council of the GFA had mandated “a constitutional committee to meet with the executives of the GFF on or before Thursday 31st March 2011, to address the issue regarding the constitutional rights of the GFA.”
This meeting was refused by the GFF, however, and this prompted the GFA to request the “postponement of the 1st Ordinary Congress of 2011 since the requirements of Articles 25 (2), (3) of the GFF’s constitution were not fulfilled.”
Subsequently, the GFF had taken umbrage at the GFF’s use of the word “sundry” to describe affiliate members of the GFF.
According to the GFA it was “most inappropriate to describe members and/or affiliates of the federation, who gratuitously and tirelessly labour for the development of the discipline of football.
“As no doubt, you are aware the word sundry is a noun, and refers to “various small items”. We sincerely hope that this is not the mindset of our parent body towards its constituent,” the letter noted.
Matthias also carbon copied the letter dated April 5 to General Secretary of FIFA Jerome Valcke, President of CONCACAF Jack Warner, General Secretaries of CONCACAF and Caribbean Football Union (CFU) respectively Chuck Blazer and Angenie Kanhai and GFF president Colin Klass. It was also copied to 20 clubs, 11 sub-association and the executive members of the GFA.
Stabroek Sport also understands from a source that the GFF held an executive meeting yesterday afternoon at 5pm to address some of the issues of the GFA, which does not have voting rights at the upcoming polls.
Some sources in the GFA also expressed concern over the Linden association suddenly receiving rights to vote after a GFF executive meeting last week while they claim the same was not granted to the GFA.
This arbitrary decision to award Linden has peeved the executive of the GFA especially since Georgetown has been an active sub-association.
The exchanges between the two bodies have been civil although many are not in favour of the way GFF president Klass and the executive of the GFF have handled the nominations and other events leading up to this juncture. Many officials have lamented the secrecy surrounding the awarding of voting rights and the nominations that will see Klass, who has headed the GFF since 1989, returning to the presidency unopposed.
