Thanks to Martinez

Here’s a strange twist in the fate that befell deposed Philippine Football Federation (PFF) president Jose Mari Martinez. After he was chastised for making the PFF his personal domain and voted out of office during the PFF National Congress last Nov. 27, Martinez is now being hailed as the key to uniting the previously fractious football community.

“Thanks to Martinez, Philippine football is now united,” said PFF chairman emeritus Johnny Romualdez the other day. “He got everyone together to kick him out for the sake of Philippine football.”

Martinez didn’t count on being the unifying element through his exit but that’s what happened. He initially contested his ouster, calling it illegal, and managed to gain support from FIFA deputy secretary-general Markus Kattner who, in a letter dated last Dec. 3, voided the vote and called for a new PFF Congress within 90 days. Martinez apparently convinced Kattner to disregard the vote on a technicality. It was Martinez’ contention that the vote had no endorsement from the PFF Board of Governors.

But PFF secretary-general Chito Manuel disputed Martinez’ contention in a letter to FIFA secretary-general Jerome Valcke dated last Dec. 6. Manuel said the Board endorsed the vote in a meeting before the Congress was convened. Martinez refused to recognize the legality of the Board meeting due to lack of notice but Manuel argued that it was only a continuation of a previous session. Martinez desperately tried to delay the inevitable.

Buoyed by Kattner’s affirmation, Martinez represented the country in negotiations for the two-leg Asean Football Federation (AFF) Suzuki Cup semifinal series in Jakarta last week. As PFF president, he boasted that no other Filipino official could sit in the VIP box during the matches.  

Martinez also said he would bring back a ton of money from Jakarta as the PFF’s share of gate receipts. The Philippines was supposed to host the first leg in the home-and-away series but forfeited its right because no local venue met the strict AFF standards. As a consolation, the AFF agreed to give the PFF a share of gate receipts in the first match. It was later disclosed that the share amounted to $200,000. Martinez said earlier he would demand a $5 share from every ticket sold. The first match drew 70,000 fans and applying Martinez’ formula, the PFF should’ve earned $350,000.

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The other day, Valcke officially ended Martinez’ reign. In a letter dated last Dec. 20, he said FIFA vice president and chairman of the association committee Geoff Thompson declared the vote in the Congress as lawful and in accordance with the PFF Constitution and By-Laws. Valcke, in effect, superseded Kattner’s ruling. Worse, Martinez was cited for “unauthorized disbursement of PFF funds, falsification of public documents and failure to return missing funds before a set deadline.” 

Valcke’s letter confirmed Martinez’ ouster by 26 votes with four abstentions out of 30 representatives present from a membership of 33 provincial associations. The letter also recognized the subsequent election of Mariano Araneta Jr. as PFF president to serve out Martinez’ unfinished term up to Nov. 26, 2011. Ismael Batiles was likewise recognized as the newly elected PFF executive vice president.

Araneta later said he would discuss with lawyers how to proceed in recovering about P2.8 million missing from the PFF coffers. An external audit has established accountability for the missing funds.

“If we know for sure who is accountable for the missing money, we will discuss with our lawyers how to go about filing charges to recover what was taken,” said Araneta. “Then, the Board of Governors will decide what course of action to take, given the recommendation of our lawyers.”

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At the recent Suzuki Cup, Martinez was reportedly a pitiful sight. The Azkals stayed clear of him and he found no ally in his lonely crusade to retain power. In media, he was lambasted for saying, before the semifinals, that he would bring in Brazilian Rick Figuerido to replace national coach Simon McMenemy and would form a new team anchored on Chad Gould and Roxy Dorlas. McMenemy said Martinez showed disrespect for the Azkals with his remarks. Martinez claimed he was misquoted but changed his tune later by saying his remarks were off-the-record. If Martinez was misquoted, then he never said the things he was supposed to have said. If his remarks were off-the-record, then he said the things he was supposed to have said but in confidence – which runs contrary to his initial charge of being misquoted.

If Martinez said no such things, who could have brought up the names of Figuerido, Gould and Dorlas? Martinez virtually called the newspaper writer who filed the story a liar. For the record, I was that writer. But who between us is the liar? 

Martinez’ story is far from over. If his accountability for the missing funds is established, he will be brought to court unless he produces the amount or persuades the Board to agree to a payment scheme. Martinez once said money is no problem and he can easily deliver P2.8 million by selling a Tagaytay property and a Toyota Fortuner, which is in former business associate Henry Tsai’s possession and supposedly in his name. It has since been discovered that the Tagaytay property is encumbered and the Fortuner is in Tsai’s name.