A friction-less working relationship among Pakistan Olympic Association (POA), Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) and national federations is very important for smooth flow of sports in the country.
If these bodies don’t respect each other, sports will suffer. We have already seen a prolonged conflict between PSB and POA a few years ago which ended finally through an agreement in Lausanne.
Now the situation is much better as POA, PSB and federations have started cooperating.
There are still some problems which need to be solved. We still see several parallel federations and associations, which is affecting their sports disciplines.
A parallel Pakistan Judo Federation (PJF) emerged in Lahore the other day with former PJF secretary Mehmood Naveed getting elected as chairman and federal minister Abid Sher Ali as president.
The PJF had already held its elections in August in which Col Junaid Alam had been elected as president and Mansoor Ahmed, brother of former PJF secretary Masood Ahmed, as secretary.
Junaid-led PJF is recognised by International Judo Federation (IJF). But the POA the other day confirmed to me that it does not own any of the PJFs. This has created complication for the country in a game in which it has world-class talent.
The elections of Junaid-led PJF had been observed by IJF’s Gerrard Benone from Switzerland.
The problem is that the Junaid-led PJF is a continuation of the previous set-up comprising former PJF chief Col Shujaat Ali and secretary Masood Ahmed, who supported Maj Gen (retd) Akram Sahi during the conflict between POA and PSB. Sahi had been installed by the government as president of a parallel POA, a blunder which ultimately caused his downfall. The government later left him alone as it was forced by the IOC to resolve the conflict by recognising Lt Gen (retd) Arif Hasan as the legitimate head of the POA.
PJF last year was allowed to enter Olympic fold in the light of the Lausanne agreement but unless it met the POA’s demands it would face problems.
The PJF does not recognise the provincial body which is affiliated with Aqil Shah-led Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Olympic Association, which is recognised by POA.
In Sindh and Punjab, too, there are some legal issues which prevented POA from owning PJF.
PJF claims that it has withdrawn all its cases it had filed against POA. Because of some reservations, POA had not sent its observer to the Junaid-led PJF’s elections.
Mehmood Naveed’s parallel body is a new development, which may hurt the progress of the game in which Pakistan made history when Japan-based judoka Shah Hussain became the first Pakistani to participate in Olympics. He featured in this year’s Rio Games after qualifying through continental quota.
Pakistan Boxing Federation (PBF) has also been hit hard by parallelism, both at the central and the provincial level for four years.
The federation got divided in two factions following the controversial elections in 2012 in Lahore. Despite controversies, ultimately POA owned Doda Bhutto-led PBF and also recommended the same body for AIBA’s recognition and the world body accepted it. But former PBF secretary and his associates claimed to have a PBF and sent some boxers abroad. Both these factions claim to have their own set-ups in the provinces and are getting ready for the PBF elections. How could elections be conducted in the presence of parallel bodies in the provinces? Several cases are also being heard in various courts. But the POA claims that there is no such issue and that it will accept those provincial boxing bodies which are recognized by Doda-led PBF.
The group led by Akram Khan could not be ignored as it has mostly boxing professionals while Doda-led PBF has completely failed to deliver.
POA backs Doda-led PBF, but PSB does not support it. The Board says on its website that PBF is a defunct body because it has not implemented the national sports policy.
The PSB also does not recognise Pakistan Basketball Federation led by Brig Rashid Malik, a former Pakistan captain.
However, as it has been recognised by POA and international basketball governing body, FIBA, the PSB has decided to go through the documents basketball federation has submitted to it. If it fulfills the Board’s requirements, it will be recognised.
The PSB has also advised Asif Bajwa, the then president of basketball federation, not to resist as his body is not recognised by FIBA.
The government has directed PSB to work with only those federations which are affiliated with their international federations.
The PSB also does not issue grants to Pakistan Gymnastic Federation (PGF) headed by Ahmed Ali Rajput, which is affiliated with the POA. There is another body which is led by Khwaja Farooq Saeed, a former POA senior official and former justice.
Because of the split of Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) into two factions, Pakistan have not featured in any international event for last one and a half years. The domestic league has not been organised for two years. Several cases are being heard in courts. The POA has failed to play a role in this conflict.
Even FIFA and AFC have failed to resolve the issue.
There are two bodybuilding federations working in the country. One is led by Sheikh Farooq and the other by Tariq Pervez. Sheikh is facing the brunt for being friends with former POA official Major Afzal who has been expelled by the POA from its fold.
The issue of parallel bodies of the Sindh Squash Association (SSA) seems too difficult to resolve. One body is headed by former squash guru Jehangir Khan and the other by Amir Khan.
The former is affiliated with the Pakistan Squash Federation (PSF) and the latter is recognised by Sindh Olympic Association (SOA).
As per POA rules, in such disputes the stance of the relevant provincial Olympic association will prevail.
It doesn’t seem correct because a federation is more powerful as it has more votes as compared to the provincial Olympic association.
I have learnt that the POA is in predicament as it could neither go against Jehangir nor it could go against the wishes of the SOA. Let’s see how it resolves the issue.
I believe the rules should be strictly followed in resolving the dispute.
There should be a viable solution to all these problems which have been damaging the sports. Leaving aside all its likes and dislikes, the POA will have to take bold steps under rules and regulations and resolve such matters on priority basis. A senior official of the PSB told me the other day that the Board did not get involved in such matters and it was the responsibility of the POA and federations to resolve such issues.
But it is generally believed that the PSB has been equally responsible in the creation of such issues. Both POA and PSB should reform themselves and work for the betterment of sports. For the last few years, Pakistan’s sports have been on the decline. We don’t see any revolutionary steps taken by either POA or PSB for sports progress. The other day federal minister for Inter-Provincial Coordination (IPC) Riaz Pirzada admitted that he was not satisfied with the achievements during his reign. The views of the minister reflect the failure of the state to develop its sports. Working within their own parameters, PSB, POA and federations should try to deliver their hundred percent.