RESOLUTION 12 has now forced its way into being mainstream news story after a crowd funded advertisement from Celtic Quick News propelled Res12 onto the agenda in Scotland and now in Switzerland. News journalists are asking questions and within hours of Wednesday’s edition of Tribune de Geneve being published SFA Chief Executive was forced into breaking years of SFA silence on the matter.
Today in their article titled ENTER UEFA, TheOffshoregame.net website gave their view of the results of the Newspaper Statement booked on your behalf. They wrote:
“This week, things have started to move – triggered, in particular, by the group of Celtic shareholders who had previously tabled a resolution asking the club’s board to raise questions on the UEFA licence. This ‘Resolution 12’ was adjourned in order for further discussion to take place. And now they have…
#RES12TANCE
“This week, the Tribune de Geneve carried the advert below from the #Res12 group – very kindly referencing ToG. It’s worth saying that we had no knowledge of the advert until we were contacted after publication by a journalist from the Tribune, and also that we have a different interpretation of the licensing issue from #Res12, in at least one significant respect; but we share, with them and a growing number of others, the conviction that much more full disclosure is needed for fans to start to recover any confidence in fair governance. Click the picture to see it as it appeared in La Julie’s print edition.
“The immediate success of the group is that, finally, the Scottish FA were forced into responding publicly – albeit only very partially.
THE SFA
“It’s not much, but it’s a start. You can enjoy the full, 81 second video clip on STV. Which is 81 more seconds of comment than we ever got, as we put each part of the report’s claims to the SFA before publication. The start of Grant Russell’s question makes clear why the issue is being raised: “You’ll be aware there’s an advert in a Geneva-based newspaper today…”.
“The most striking feature is that Regan presents the SFA role not as a regulator, but as a regulated body itself.
“He doesn’t argue, for example, that the SFA did a good job of ensuring Rangers met the criteria to compete in Europe. Instead, he says: “Our position on that is that we have complied with UEFA requirements in the period immediately following March 2011.”
“Regan goes on to make it clear that he sees no further accountability of the SFA either to Celtic, a member club, or more importantly to Scottish football fans. Only if these other actors are able to convince UEFA itself to take action – even though it is the SFA which is the member here – will the SFA take any further steps. And these will be reactive only: in such an event, “we will fully cooperate and comply with any requests for information from UEFA”.
“Two other points are worth noting. One is that Regan seems to misrepresent the #Res12 group, claiming that they are happy with the granting of the licence to Rangers (and only unhappy in respect of the subsequent ‘monitoring’). As far as we understand it, #Res12 objects to the granting of the licence – only that they focus on the June deadline rather than the March one (or any of the previous years) as being the critical point. This may just be a presentational slip from Regan (it’s a live piece, after all), but it’s not a great look…
“…especially in what appears to be a prepared answer, which is the other point. Regan’s last answer was to dismiss a follow-up. A journalist (unknown) asked something on the lines of “Can I just ask, I’m assuming there was some kind of internal SFA investigation-“, before Regan cut in: “I’ve made my point clear on the question that was asked, and as far as we’re concerned we’ve dealt with it in accordance with UEFA regulations.” Again, this makes clear that only one line of accountability is recognised; but it also suggests, perhaps, that the one question had been agreed beforehand.”
You can read the full article HERE.
On what SFA Chief Executive Stewart Regan had to say in the STV clip above, Auldheid on behalf of the Res12 guys responded as follows:
“A bit of clarification on Mr Regan’s statement with regard to requisitioners being happy that the licence was granted properly at 31 March.
“The Resolution when written in 2013 mentioned the granting as well as administration and implementation of UEFA rules.
However in following up it quickly became evident from the rules regarding tax that whilst a liability existed at 31st March no demand to pay did. That did not turn up until 20 May.
“So there was no point pursuing whether the tax was overdue as UEFA define it at 31st March. There was no happiness involved.
The concerns were around the 20 May bill that became an overdue payable as UEFA define it by mid June and it is around the process at that time Res12 concentrated.
“However should the circumstances regarding the granting be fully investigated (but I doubt they will) then the skullduggery eyebrow might reach Roger Moore proportions.”
On the Scottish Football Monitor site the poster Corrupt Official had this to say about the Statement in the Tribune de Geneve:
“First off, I would like to thank the Res 12 Bhoys for putting together the funding, and organising the Swiss newspaper advert. This advert was a huge custard pie in the mush of the SMSM, exposing the steps that need to be taken to have a voice in North Koreadonia.
“It has been a ten-fold that, level of embarrassment for the SFA though. This was a big foamy paper plate, launched from some distance, with considerable venom. The arc of trajectory was followed by many, slack-jawed and with bated breath, as it made it’s way to it’s intended target. A big baw-face on UEFA’s doorstep. It didn’t miss. The “SPLATT” is still reverberating around Europe.
“The SFA are standing there, with their troosers around their ankles, totally exposed, with only the dripping foam concealing their modesty. Weans are pointing at them and laughing. The postie crashed and fell off his bike, The baker’s breid-board scattered croissants over the cobbled paving, and coffee was spluttered over many an elegant blouse.
“Chapeau Res 12-ers….Chapeau. An image of Stewart Regan, peeling two eye-holes of creamy foam from his face to speak yesterday, should be hung in the hall of fame.”
Indeed following the publication of the Resolution 12 Statement in the Tribune de Geneve the Scottish media themselves were forced to report on the matter. And their stories were topping the news polls for their news items on Wednesday with the leading story at The Daily Record, The Scotsman and CQN’s old friends at The Herald all being about Resolution 12.
How ironic then when earlier in the week we reported on how The Herald Group of newspapers, The Herald, Sunday Herald and Evening Times declined to run the Statement without ever seeing it.
Appealing to their demographic, being put under pressure from certain advertisers or simply doing someone a favour may have been the reason but they walked away from the advertising revenue only to be forced to write the banned words RESOLUTION 12 days later as we set the agenda.
It has been an interesting week apart from all of this at Celtic Quick News. We are formulating plans, trying to implement but mysteriously doors are being closed on us at the last minute from very senior sources. It is almost as if people are trying very hard to prevent us spreading the message on Resolution 12.
That is unlikely to work.
The Offshoregame.net report has now been read over 50,000 times.
Journalists in Switzerland are interested, asking questions and taking in everything in that report.
There is more activity being planned to happen in Switzerland over the next few weeks, which will once again set the agenda.
The Tribune de Geneve are interested in a follow up. 
Celtic have yet to speak and while the new found interest from the Scottish media is charming, the club will almost certainly address the matter directly to their own supporters rather than through the MSM.
One journalist, a presenter on Clyde 1’s football show, once told Auldheid on Twitter that he didn’t read the documentation sent to all the main sports journalists in Scotland because, “frankly life is too short.” Auldheid had to be admired for years of effort when it must have looked like he was banging his head against a brick wall.
It has taken years to get them mainstream media in Scotland interested and it only happened because supporters, mostly from Celtic Quick News (don’t forget that supporters of other clubs including Hearts, Aberdeen, Hibs and Dundee United contributed too) put their hands in their pockets, took the matter directly to Switzerland on the same day that the submission from the Celtic shareholders arrived on the desks of the relevant UEFA officials.
Do you get the feeling that Resolution 12 in now unstoppable?
Because…
