In their coverage of the Celtic AGM the Daily Record described the reappearance of Resolution 12 from 2013 as an old chestnut.
It’s a chestnut that is refusing to go away regardless of the efforts, or lack of effort from some.
A highly determined group of Celtic shareholders have been seeking answers now for six years as to why their club weren’t put forward for the 2011/12 Champions League qualifiers when the club nominated by the SFA achieved the SPL title at the expense of HMRC.
While Celtic and others paid their dues the old club from Ibrox refused to pay a bill going back almost a decade to the time that they were paying Tore Andre Flo and Ronald de Boer.
After years of dragging their heels and outright lies from Stewart Regan last September the SFA were finally forced to admit that the issue needed investigated.
CELTIC turnover to June 2012 without Champions League- £51,341,000
CELTIC turnover to June 2013 including Champions League- £75,816,000
Celtic requested a review of the entire period from 2011 to see what could be learned to avoid a repeat. Unfortunately some of the main players are still in place, protecting their empire and the succession line for presidency of the SFA.
Last year at the Celtic AGM the board told shareholders that they were prepared to wait for the SFA to complete the process.
After investigations started in September 2017 charges were brought against ‘Rangers’ in May 2018 which brought a predictable angry reply laced with threats.
In July 2018 the SFA announced nothing in particular claiming that the club from Ibrox had called in the Five Way Agreement and that only the Court of Arbitration could rule on the matter.
Since then it’s been silence, a secret silence with no details being published.
As it’s title suggests CAS arbitrate on decisions made by sporting bodies, as far as anyone knows no decision has been taken.
The current club at Ibrox ought to be unrelated to the club still in liquidation that played in the Champions League qualifiers with unpaid tax bills.
Andrew Dickson remains in the corridors of power at Hampden, Dave King was given the red carpet status, Alastair Johnston lurks around with the SFA still not saying whether he is fit and proper.
From the top table answers at the AGM it seems that there is no urgency on the part of the Celtic board to push for answers, they seem happy with the slow moving secretive approach from those inside Hampden.
If £24m went missing from this years accounts you’d like to think that the board of directors would show some urgency to look into how this happened.
For reasons that are difficult for other shareholders to understand it seems that the Celtic board appear happy to move on and look the other way for the sake of Scottish football.
The shareholders pushing the issue have spent £10,000 from money raised on legal costs and untold hours unravelling the cloak of secrecy.
Following the AGM they have been offered financial support to ensure that justice is done, with no-one in Scotland appearing to be interested in the £24m fraud it seems inevitable that the issue will have to go to London for proper investigation.
