Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) president Faisal Saleh Hayat has been dismissed for incompetence and fund embezzlement after an extraordinary meeting of the federation, local media reported.Only 18 of the 26 members of the PFF were present at the meeting in Islamabad on Tuesday where Hayat was also suspended from the PFF and secretary Ahmad Yar Khan Lodhi kicked out of the body, a local newspaper reported. Arshad Khan Lodhi was appointed the acting president in place of Hayat, an Asian Football Confederation executive committee member and a former ally of disgraced ex AFC president Mohammed bin Hammam. Despite the dismissal, Hayat, 62, who sits on FIFA’s strategic committee, is still eligible to stand in the PFF elections on June 30. He faces competition from Zahir Ali Shah in the vote, which will take place at PFF headquarters in Lahore after previously being moved to Abbottabad district.Hayat told Reuters last week he had supported outgoing FIFA president Sepp Blatter in last month’s elections at the world governing body.Over the last few months, PFF has seen the formation of two rivals groups, with resultant infighting now leading to a possible mission being sent by the world’s football governing body, FédérationInternationale de Football Association (FIFA). Along with the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), it seems that international organisations have been asked to monitor the state of football in Pakistan; they will send a representative to tackle the gaping mess that has been made of the PFF. It is bad enough a sporting body is embroiled in embezzlement, what is ludicrous is how we are relying on an organisation to clean up our financial and structural mess that is already swimming in their own. FIFA has been under scrutiny for possible money laundering involving the 2018 and 2022 World Cup bid contests, topped off with bribery and racketeering involving their officials. With the mesh of controversies regarding the PFF, it is fair to say that they seem to be focusing on everything, except football. Despite having innumerable talent and potential of players, Pakistan is ranked 170 in world football and has never actually qualified for a World Cup.
pk.shafaqna.com
