Warner is untouchable, warns Panday - Inside World Football

By David Gold

October 25 – Former Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Basdeo Panday has said that ex-FIFA vice-president Jack Warner cannot be touched, as an investigation is carried out into the former CONCACAF President’s role in the cash-for-votes scandal by the country’s Attorney General.

Anand Ramlogan, who is also a human rights attorney-at-law, was this month given videos and transcripts, which appear to show Warner encouraging Caribbean Football Union (CFU) officials to take cash gifts prior to the FIFA presidential election in June.

The gifts were from former Presidential candidate Mohamed Bin Hammam, who was suspended by FIFA over the incident, along with Warner, and subsequently banned from all football activity.

He was also forced to withdraw from the Presidential election, whilst Warner quit FIFA following the allegations.

A video revealed by The Daily Telegraph last month shows Warner saying: “When Mohamed Bin Hammam asked to come to the Caribbean he wanted to bring some silver plaques and wooden trophies and bunting and so on, and told me to bring for 30 people would be too much luggage.

“I told him he did not need to bring anything but if he wanted to bring anything to bring something equivalent to the value of the gift that he brought.

“I said to him if you bring cash, I don’t want you to give cash to anybody, but when you do you can give it to the CFU and the CFU will give it to his members.

“Because I don’t want [it] to even remotely appear that anyone has any obligation to vote for you because of what gifts you have given them, and he fully accepted that.”

Trinidad and Tobago’s current Prime Minister, Kamla Persad-Bissessar (pictured left with Warner), decided to hand the matter over to Ramlogan, while police say investigations continue.

Panday, though, believes Warner must have incriminating evidence of wrongdoing in high places in Trinidad, such has been his ability to evade prosecution.

“I am now beginning to believe Mr Warner when he said he had a file on them because it seems as though he cannot be touched, even when the evidence is glaring,” he said.

“If, by his own admission, he said he handed money over in the circumstances in which it was said and still, the Prime Minister doesn’t believe there was any wrongdoing, then it must be that he has a file.

“The Prime Minister has got to take a decision on this matter and I believe she is trying to avoid taking that decision by handing the problem to the AG (Attorney General), who I can predict, will give a nonsensical legal decision in favour of Warner.

“The moment the Prime Minister said she was referring the Warner matter to the AG I knew they were going to cook it up.

“I don’t think Warner is being treated lightly, but with fear.

“I think he’s holding something over them and they can’t touch him and their actions seem to confirm that he has files containing deleterious matter against them.”

Contact the writer of this story at zib.l1732681673labto1732681673ofdlr1732681673owedi1732681673sni@d1732681673log.d1732681673ivad1732681673