When we spoke to Chairman Williams he was leaving the courtroom of Justice Minnette Hafiz where he had just appeared as
the new attorney for the National Sports Council in its battle with the Football Federation of Belize.
The FFB through its attorney Elson Kaseke applied for leave for judicial review of the Sports Council's decision to de-certify the FFB.
But today that case was wholly withdrawn with the promise that another without a significant defect will be filed. That's one development. The other is that - at long last - the FFB submitted a copy of its 2010 statutes. This is the document which the sports council has been requesting for months - and they claim the non disclosure of it led to the FFB's decertification.
Well, no more, it's been submitted, but will it be in time to meet FIFA's June 30th. deadline to work things out in Belize, or else. We spoke to attorneys for both sides:….
Rodwell Williams
"The court order the FFB to withdraw its claim and its claim is withdrawn. The FFB then withdrew their claim and undertook to file a new claim. At the end of that FFB then produce to me in court what purports to be their 2010 statute despite the fact that there is a sworn affidavit by Dr. Bertie Chimilio file in that claim that was withdrawn stating that they have no amendment to their 2006 statute and that their statute was simply to 2006. It turn out that they produce one for 2010."
Reporter
"Obviously there are legal ramifications when you sign an affidavit and you swear that it's true and it's not."
Rodwell Williams
"There are consequences. I am sure there are consequences."
Jules Vasquez
"So now the possess of the statutes, does that mean the suspension of FFB or decertification of FFB will be lifted?"
Elson Kaseke
"That's what we are waiting to ask. Within the next few days it should be resolve."
Jules Vasquez
"So they could be reinstated base on the submission of these 2010 statutes?"
Rodwell Williams
"It may be possible I would imagine."
Elson Kaseke
"I think the parties are working to resolve the issues now and we might be in the process of moving out of court because the because they are certain representations which I am not at liberty to disclose because of a court order which I think will remove the course of action. The parties are willing to sort it through within the next few days. The issue should be resolve."
Reporter
"FIFA have ordered the FFB to resolve this by the 30th of June."
Elson Kaseke
"I am confident that by that day we will get some positive results."
Alfonso Noble, reporter
"Are you guys resolving out of court because you want the game to play?"
Elson Kaseke
"Definitely the FFB is always been pro-game. We would want the game to be played too."
Rodwell Williams
"Well I don't have a time frame quite frankly. If anybody has impose a time frame, whoever impose the time frame work with their time frame. I haven't certainly no time frame. All I have undertaken to the court is to supply the document that was delivered to me to the sports council and I have done that and the sports council undertook to me that they would respond to me by the 30th of this month."
Jules Vasquez
"So you aren't working inexorable towards getting everything settled by July 10?"
Rodwell Williams
"That's not my brief at all."
Elson Kaseke
"The issue is a mere resolution within the next few days I am hopeful that some positive news will come out and members of the football loving community can go out and watch the football game schedule for early July."
The Sports Council will now consider the statutes but no timeline has been set - and they appear in no hurry to kowtow to FIFA's deadline….
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