Camara resigns, Lawrence to submit technical report and TTFA debt crosses $50 million

Camara David has resigned as Trinidad and Tobago Football Association (TTFA) general secretary, effective Saturday 30 November, and will be replaced by the new board of the local football body on the advice of president William Wallace.

David, who was hired in February 2019, was a controversial figure from even before his appointment, as a motion from the general membership recommended that previous president David John-Williams retain David’s predecessor, Justin Latapy-George instead.

Photo: Soca Warriors head coach Dennis Lawrence (far right) poses with TTFA president David John-Williams (second from right), team manager Richard Piper (second from left) and Camara David (far left) in 2018.
(Copyright Alan V Crane/CA-Images/Wired868)

David’s contract was due to run until February 2020 but he opted to walk early. His resignation was accepted by Wallace.

There was no such offer to fall on his own sword by Men’s National Senior Team head coach Dennis Lawrence who also met with Wallace and his vice-presidents, Clynt Taylor, Susan Joseph-Warrick and Sam Phillip, today.


Lawrence, who is believed to be under contract until 2022, was asked to ‘submit a technical report, with particular reference to the 2019 Gold Cup and Nations League tournaments’.

Soca Warriors manager Richard Piper and TTFA Elite Programme head Gary St Rose also met the new TTFA president and were asked to present ‘a 2019 manager’s report’ and ‘a 2019 report on the Elite Programme and a budget for 2020’ respectively.

At present, the TTFA does not have a board installed and the relevant football bodies were asked to name their representative by 6 December 2019.

Photo: SSFL president William Wallace (centre) prepares to hand over the 2019 Premier Division trophy to Naparima College at CIC grounds on 4 November 2019.
Wallace was elected TTFA president on 24 November 2019.
(Copyright Allan V Crane/CA-Images/Wired868)

The new TTFA board will comprise of Wallace, Taylor, Joseph-Warrick and Phillip as well as one appointee each from the Eastern Counties Football Union, Northern Football Association, Southern Football Association, Tobago Football Association, Trinidad and Tobago Football Referees Association, Women’s League of Football, Eastern Football Association, TT Pro League, Veteran Footballers Foundation and Secondary Schools Football League.

Wallace also contradicted John-Williams on the financial state of the local football body as he claimed that ‘the established debt discovered to date is approximately TT$50 million, including TT$1.7 million for the unfinished Home of Football’.

Wallace, via a press release, suggested that he expects this debt to increase ‘with outstanding claims being discovered each day’.

Earlier this month, John-Williams said he met a TT$30 million debt when he assumed office in November 2015 and said he reduced that figure by TT$12 million. However, the TTFA’s financial sheet for 2015 suggested that John-Williams met a debt of TT$16 million from his predecessor, Raymond Tim Kee.

Either way, Wallace suggested that the local football body’s financial status has significantly worsened during his predecessor’s four year term.


Photo: TTFA president David John-Williams (right) and general secretary Camara David pose during the opening of the TTFA Home of Football on 18 November 2019.
(Courtesy Allan V Crane/TTFA Media)

Other decisions made by the new president and shared with the public, via the TTFA Media, include:

  • A meeting with the TTFA’s legal counsel on Friday regarding the body’s 13 legal cases, inclusive of a dispute with Selwyn Melville over the Soca Warriors brand and a case by former general secretary Sheldon Phillips
  • A proposal for a quarterly media round table to facilitate transparency and cordial relations with the media.
  • Meetings to discuss development matters with TTFA members, starting with the Southern FA on 29 November and the Trinidad and Tobago Referees Association on 30 November
  • This dispatch of a letter of congratulation to Trinidad and Tobago National Senior Team player Aubrey David for winning the CONCACAF League with Costa Rican club Deportivo Saprissa
  • The creation of an association email domain, so as to ensure all TTFA correspondence remains the property of and accessible to the Association.
  • Preliminary discussions regarding the Women’s National Under-20 Team’s participation in the CONCACAF World Cup qualifiers, scheduled for February 2020.
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