Martinez insists ouster was illegal

Jose Mari Martinez said yesterday he�s both happy and sad about his ouster as president of the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) following a vote at the National Congress acting on a motion endorsed by the Board of Governors.

�I�m happy because now I know that all it takes is to pay off the representatives of the provincial associations for their votes but I�m sad because they did it in violation of the PFF Constitution and By-Laws,� said Martinez. �If it�s just a matter of money, that�s no problem. I was told the pay-off was only P50,000 to vote for my removal.�

Martinez said nobody can pin him down on accountability for the so-called missing funds amounting to about P2.8 million. �I dare anyone to take me to court,� he said. �If all they want is money, I can give it to them, anytime. When I want or need money, it�s there. Two weeks ago, I got a commitment for P2 million from my foreign sources. The first P1 million arrived and I used it to pay off obligations from the recent hosting of the under-16 ladies tournament. When I was told a budget of P150,000 was required for a tournament in Tagum, I gave my own money. But after what they did to me in the Congress, I got my money back.�

Martinez said his allies in FIFA, AFC (Asian Football Confederation) and AFF (Asian Football Federation) won�t take his ouster lightly.

�I�m definitely going to court,� said Martinez who attended the Congress at the PhilSports Audio-Visual Room last Saturday with two lawyers Arnold Perez and Voltaire de la Cruz. �I�m not worried. The vote they took was both amazing and shocking. One by one, I saw them voting me out. But the vote was illegal. For the Congress to call for a vote to remove the president, there must be an endorsement from the Board. A Board meeting was held a few hours before the Congress but it was not legal. You need a 30-day notice for a Board meeting. They forced a meeting at the PFF building. I was in my office in the same building but didn�t attend because there was no notice. They insisted on holding the meeting without my consent and brought up the motion but it couldn�t be lawful because it was an illegal meeting. We will bring this up in court because it was a clear violation of the PFF Constitution and By-Laws. This case isn�t over.�

Martinez said if necessary, he will call on his brother-in-law Tarsy Cruz, a top-notch lawyer from the Romulo, Mabanta, Buenaventura, Sayoc and De los Angeles group, to bring up the matter in court.

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