PHF changes national selection committee for 3rd time

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) has changed the national selection committee and team management for the third time in two years, handing over the team management to former chief selector Hasan Sardar and giving selection reigns to Islahuddin Siddiqui.

The decisions were taken in PHF Congress meeting which were later announced by the Brig (rtd) Khalid Sajjad Khokhar at a press briefing.

In two years time since Brig (rtd) took over as the president, this is the third time that selection committee and team management has been changed. Khawaja Junaid was appointed manager and Rashid Junior as chief selector. Following disastrous performance in the World Hockey League, the team management and selection committee was changed again. Farhat Khan took over as the new manager with Hasan Sardar getting the job of chief selector. After yet another debacle in the Asia Cup and later four-nation hockey in Australia, the team management was shown the door again. Hasan Sardar has now become team manager with Islahuddin Siddiqui as chief selector of the team. The PHF president said that they were given Rs 330 million by federal government in recent times. “We have been given cash of Rs 330 million and have got all the records with us.” However, during the meeting no hard copies of any expenditure and even no audit hard copy were distributed amongst the members of the Congress. According to estimate, the PHF has spent around Rs 480 million during the last two years. That was before the Sindh CM Murad Ali Shah’s donation of Rs 110 million. “Even no activity report was presented in the Congress. Even audit report was not given to Congress members,” one of the members said. He quoted Brig Khokhar as saying that hard copy of audit would be presented to all members within two weeks. PHF president announced that scrutiny of all the PHF units would be conducted in February this year followed by elections.

“The PHF has never defaulted. “We are not defaulters or own money to any organization.” Meanwhile, Peshawar High Court in a decision reached on Thursday allowed genuinely elected KP Hockey associated to attend the meeting. Zahir Shah accompanied by all 12 members were allowed to attend the Congress meeting after the decision. Zahir Shah during the Congress meeting demanded hard copies of all expenditures and audit. “It is constitutional obligation under 12.96 which says that audited hard copies of all the expenditure and audit report would be given to members during every Congress meeting. This also includes the budget estimate for next year.”