PANAJI
The Executive Committee members of Goa Football Association have written to the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators (CoA) of the All India Football Federation (AIFF), alerting it about "misrepresentation of facts" by president Churchill Alemao that the State wants I-League to be the topflight league in the country.
The Executive Committee members cited a news report in the Hindustan Times, which claimed Goa was the only State association out of 36 affiliates which didn't want Indian Super League (ISL) to be the top league in the country and instead preferred that status be granted to the I-League.
"The matter being of grave importance, we the Executive Committee members of the Goa Football Association bring to the notice of the CoA that neither in the recent Executive Committee of the GFA held on 12th July 2022, which was subsequently adjourned and continued on 15th July 2022, nor in any of the past meetings, any such matter was discussed nor was any decision taken by the Committee with regards to the above mentioned subject," the letter by the GFA Executive Committee members to the CoA said.
"The news item involving the Goa FA has compelled us the undersigned Executive Committee members of Goa FA who could meet at short notice to make this representation, without prejudice to the rights of other members who could not be contacted at such a short notice," read the communique signed by Anthony Pango, vice-president, and members Jonathan De Sousa, Adlear D'Cruz, Anthony Leo Fernandes, Prakash Dessai, Cosme Oliveira and Digvijay Velingkar.
"Whatever recommendations or suggestions received by AIFF have therefore to be treated as sent by the President of the GFA in his individual capacity and disregarded outright as being unauthorised."
The GFA members pointed out Alemao's "personal association" which might have prompted him to make the suggestion.
"We the below named members being unaware of the contents of the letter sent by the Association to the CoA, are compelled to bring to your notice the bias and conflict of interest in the comments. The President of GFA has personal association with Churchill Brothers SC, an I-League club and therefore ought to have recused himself from sending any comments without taking up the matter in the executive committee meeting.
"It appears that the President has shown scant regard to the Executive Committee members and gone ahead and expressed his personal views as that of the Association, without any basis and such views fall short of being the views of the GFA... In the circumstances, we once again request you to review the situation by disregarding the views sent from Goa in entirety," the letter stated.
