POA president not part of new PSB ExCo

KARACHI: Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) has omitted Pakistan Olympic Association’s (POA) president from its new 18-member executive committee which will meet in the next few days.

As per the rules, the Board makes necessary changes in its executive committee. Keeping in view the rotation policy, it gives membership to new federations and personalities.

A PSB source said that the Board was not bound to keep the POA president as permanent member of the Board’s executive committee. “The POA president had told us in writing during the POA’s legal battle with the PSB a few years ago that the POA was not affiliated with the Board. If POA president’s presence is necessary in the Board’s executive committee then equally PSB Director General’s presence in the POA’s executive committee is also necessary,” the source said.

POA president Lt Gen (retd) Arif Hasan’s former rival and the president of Athletics Federation of Pakistan (AFP) Major General Akram Sahi and his federation is also not part of the new executive committee. “The presence of both POA president and Akram Sahi in the Board’s executive committee’s meeting had been a real problem for the board,” the Board’s source pointed out.

Pakistan Netball Federation (PNF), Pakistan Kabaddi Federation (PKF), Pakistan Table Tennis Federation (PTTF), Pakistan Wrestling Federation (PWF) and Pakistan Weightlifting Federation have been given entry into the committee which makes major decisions.

Federal minister for Inter-Provincial Coordination (IPC) Riaz Pirzada will as usual head the committee. The IPC minister is the constitutional president of the Board.

Former Olympian and secretary of Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) Shahbaz Senior, business tycoons Aqeel Karim Dhedhi, chief executive of Green Hills Jehangir Riaz, businessman Arif Habib, renowned lawyer Inam Amin Minhas and badminton player Mrs Zareena Waqar are also part of the new committee which will work for two years.

Senior vice-president of PSB, PSB vice-president, DG PSB and financial advsior PSB are also part of the committee.

Meanwhile, the POA president will be part of the PSB board which has been reduced from 82 to 31 members.