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The War Of Words: Ruperto Vs. The Rebels
posted (February 19, 2016)
So, right now, the FFB is in a precarious situation, and the president is waiting to see if his suspension stands. The other 3 executive committee members are holding their ground; they say Vicente is bad for football and he has to go.

All this is unfolding just 6 weeks before elections are due for the entire FFB executive.

But, now, this fight - brewing for months behind closed doors - has erupted into public view.

The main complaint that the Chuc, Kuylen and Gamez have against their President is that he has been making unilateral decisions, without consultation, and sometimes even after they've counseled him against a policy direction. Next, they complain that he has given General Secretary Michael Blease too much authority to make decisions that only the president ought to be able to make.

Finally, they're accusing Vicente of rigging the district elections in his favor, to ensure his re-election in April. Now, that's a heavy charge to lay against Vicente, after all he was elected a platform of transparency and accountability. Not only that, but the man he replaced, Dr. Bertie Chimilio was accused of doing the same thing!

Vicente, for his part, isn't having any of it. He claims that his executive members are trying to drag his name in the mud so that they can railroad his re-election attempt. Today, we had an extensive back and forth with both sides on a number of the issues. It's lengthy, but bear with us as we challenge both sides to their issues and counter-issues. Here Ruperto Vicente and Marlon Kuylen rebutting each other:

Daniel Ortiz
"They are suggesting a Bertie Chimilio route of leadership when he was run out of office because he was rigging the elections in his favor. Are you so doing something like that similar?"

Ruperto Vicente, President - FFB
"Well that cannot happen, because we have an electoral committee and the congress elected an electoral committee and that electoral committee takes charge of the elections."

Marlon Kuylen, Executive Member
"It's sad to say, but the difference with Bertie Chimilio, he was smart and that's the big difference. But yes the style and everything exact the same."

Ruperto Vicente, President - FFB
"The electoral committee views all the applications and they indicate which one is legal and which is not. Which is filled out properly and which is not. These are professional people whom we've asked to serve the federation and to say that the elections are being manipulated means that you are telling us that those people whom we have elected, private citizens, people who have nothing to do with football, are cheating the system? No, that is wrong. And I think those people who are saying that, those executive members who are saying that - who are accusing these people, including the president as manipulating elections, should be suspended. We have got to take that clearly - they have to be suspended, because they are accusing these people wrongly. So the electoral committee is in charge of elections. Mr. Vicente does not interfere with elections. I will not participate in it."

Marlon Kuylen, Executive Member
"In October, the general secretary and the president were trying to have endorsements in all the districts. We got wind of it. I personally wrote to CONCACAF, the legal department and they called in and say you need to get the proper procedures in place. So we had an extraordinary congress where we elected the electoral committee and the appeals committee and then the process started again. However, the information is not being presented to the people - the aspiring persons. In other words, if you are going to have elections, everybody in that area supposed to know when will be the elections, where, who you need to contact to get the nominations, but these things are not happening and the time is running out and so what is in effect happening again is mostly, we are not saying everybody, but mostly endorsements is still happening again."

Ruperto Vicente, President - FFB
"The suspension is because these men are of the opinion that they cannot win an election against me. They can't win an election and so they want to go into an election without me as their opponent."

Marlon Kuylen, Executive Member
"We don't want his job. What we want, is this is the last opportunity to take a stance and that's why we are waiting until now, because either way it goes, we want people to know and rest of the football family that we are not condoning these actions. We have been speaking about it. Internally we are trying to deal with it, but it's not going anywhere and also we have to send a message to FIFA and CONCACAF that they need to step in."

Ruperto Vicente, President - FFB
"These people had been in the federation and they have not done anything for football. The success of our football federation largely depends because I had made important decisions. I have made decisions that is of the best interest of football in this country. That's the reason we are experiencing success."

Marlon Kuylen, Executive Member
"That's total nonsense. You know what would be the ideal situation for us right now, have FIFA send a normalization committee, the come in and review everything that's going on here and I will specifically ask that they come and look at the electoral code and guide us. In fact I would like for them to come and take over that organization and let us move forward."

Ruperto Vicente, President - FFB
"Why would you seek to suspend the president at this time 6 weeks before an election? Why didn't you do it year and a half ago - two years ago? Because they had the same complain that I was making decisions on my own two years ago. So they should have made the suspension then. Why now? It is because they have a motive. They cannot stand against me in election. So I am calling them out - come and beat me in election day, because I will beat them."

Reporter
"Mr. Chuc wants your position?"

Ruperto Vicente, President - FFB
"Everybody. He want the position. So I beg the question now why is Mr. Chuc so possess? Why is he posses with the presidency of the federation? Why does he wants it and even have it by force?"

Marlon Kuylen, Executive Member
"Why would us after being elected of all gung ho about writing this ship - we got rid of a tyrant? And then 6 months down the road we start having problems and then all your executive turned against you. Something must be drastically wrong for that to happen. We can't continue seeing these illegalities happening and not doing anything about it. Our reputations are important to us and we are tired of our names being dragged in the mud because of the actions of the general secretary and president by condoning it. At this point I am willing to walk away. But at the same time, we had to take this stance."

Ruperto Vicente, President - FFB
"If you don't like the way we are doing our work, if you don't like the way we are dealing with football? Do the honorable thing - resigned! Resign! Rather than coming here and say oh we are going to suspend the president. No man. Go your way. Resign and let the embarrassment come at me."

Marlon Kuylen, Executive Member
"First of all we thought of all resigning, but then we were advised that we can't do anything from being on the outside, you have to be on the inside to try to make the changes."

So, what about this issue of the 3 accusing Vicente of taking unilateral decisions which have gone badly for Belize's football in the past 4 years? We asked both sides about that complaint and here's what they told us:

Ruperto Vicente, President - FFB
"We have the executive decisions and we have administrative decisions. When the executive makes a decision it comes to us at ground, then I as the president can also make adjustments, administrative adjustments to those executive decisions."

Marlon Kuylen, Executive Member
"Listen, when you sit in meetings and you pass resolutions and it's limited and then you walk out of the meeting and decisions that you have already passed in the meetings are not being done. Then you sort of wondering if it is undermining or do you even meet, why do you even discuss these things if our resolutions are not being adhere to?"

Ruperto Vicente, President - FFB
"We had agree that we would not send the football to Guatemala. But when we wrote UNCAF and telling them that we would not participate in the tournament, UNCAF immediately sent us a letter saying no, the tournament had been registered with FIFA and so we have to participate and these are the sanctions if you fail to participate. So administratively I had to decide that we were going to participate, because it would have been a lot cheaper to participate than to endure the consequence of not participating."

Marlon Kuylen, Executive Member
"Yes, I agree with him that there are some administrative decisions that need to be made. But all you need to do is pick up the phone and call us or sent us a text or something and say you know guys I know we agree to this, but this is the way it has to go because of so and so and we will accept that. This man goes out of the country, we don't know and by right the senior vice president is supposed to take over when he leaves. We hear about stuff happening in the federation from the media. I wake up in the morning and I listen to Ruben so that I could get information of what's happening in the federation and that's totally nonsense man."

While all this is taking place, the football community has to again witness infighting from their sport's governing body. We asked both sides about that, and today, not surprisingly, they had starkly contrasting views. Here's what they told us:

Reporter
"Sir, you do realize how this internal battle looks in the public? It looks like everybody wants power. What do you think about that, how the public may perceive of what's happening within the FFB, within the executive of the FFB?"

Marlon Kuylen, Executive Member
"That's exactly what we did not want. That's why we try to alright this problem internally. But it has gotten to a point and we've written CONCACAF, we've written FIFA and we have had no response from them. This is the last stance we could take. There is nothing about power. I know it will look bad, but I could guarantee you that I could walk away from this today, but I had to do this what I am doing right now. Again, our reputation is at stake and I am not going to have somebody ruin my reputation."

Ruperto Vicente, President - FFB
"I would not call it an embarrassment. I think it is good for football, that we need to continue to learn and FIFA will come in to educate us. It is not an embarrassment because FIFA is not coming to break up our house. FIFA is only coming to assist us in what we are doing, in better managing football, better administrating our football - that's what FIFA is coming to do. So for me it is not an embarrassment."

As soon as the decision on Vicente's suspension is in, we'll share it with you. We'll also have a little more on this back and forth next week, in which we'll ask the President about his alleged indulgence of Secretary General Michael Blease and the perceived negative effects his decisions have had on the FFB's management of football.

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