‘No age restriction in PHF constitution’

KARACHI: The federal government has sought the opinion of Pakistan Olympic Association (POA) about any age restriction in the appointments of Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF).
The sitting officials have claimed that according to the PHF constitution people over 70 cannot become president and those over 65 cannot be secretary of PHF.
Sources said that PHF’s current management was trying to save its seats by using such arguments.
A source who is involved in the affairs of national hockey said that the entire election of PHF was fake as the national game had been restricted to a few districts of Punjab, while the majority of hockey community had been kept away from the election so that PHF’s officials could easily get their close associates elected.
The PHF authorities imposed age restrictions to stop their opponents who were aged.
Sources said that the age restrictions were discussed in the PHF congress meetings but not made part of the constitution.
A source who sat in the congress meeting confirmed that this issue was discussed in the meeting but the constitution was not amended.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has appointed an inquiry committee to ascertain the reasons behind Pakistan’s failure to qualify for Rio Olympics 2016.
The committee has been asked to give suggestions to improve hockey in the country.
A source said the PHF’s incumbent officials wanted to thwart former prime minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali, who has old association with hockey and has worked as PHF president.
Jamali is a possible successor in case of a change in the PHF.
The PHF bosses are making hectic efforts to save themselves from any action by the government.
They are using age restriction to stop appointments of their rivals in the PHF in case of a change, former Olympian Naveed Alam said.
He said that PHF’s election had no legal status as a number of cases had been registered in various courts to challenge the elections. And no amendment has been made to the PHF’s constitution regarding age restrictions, he said.
“Time has proved what we had been saying for past several years about the PHF chiefs,” Naveed said.
PHF’s fact-finding committee will hold meetings in Islamabad and Karachi, in which it will meet the selection committee members and senior journalists.
The committee will likely reach Karachi next week.
Sources close to the chairman selection committee Islahuddin said that he would not meet the PHF’s committee as the committee formed by the PM was already working on this subject.
Member selection committee Ayaz Mehmood, who resides in Karachi, said that he would not go to the meeting as PM’s committee had full authority to do the same job and it is doing well in Islamabad. “The people appointed by PHF will give a report which suits the current officials,” he said.
Mansoor Ahmed, a member of the committee, said that Islahuddin and Ayaz were seniors so the committee members would themselves go to them.