ISLAMABAD: FIFA, soccer’s global governing body, said on Wednesday it had suspended the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) with immediate effect due to third-party interference.
FIFA said it was suspending PFF because of a “hostile takeover” led by a group headed by Ashfaq Hussain Shah, which took over PFF headquarters last month and seized control from the FIFA ‘normalization committee’ headed by Haroon Malik.
The group was elected by the Supreme Court in 2018 to run PFF but was not recognized by FIFA, which does not accept government or court interference.
“FIFA issued a letter warning that, should the illegitimate occupation of the PFF headquarters not be lifted and the office bearers recognized by FIFA not be permitted free access to the building to carry out their mandate, the matter would be immediately submitted to the Bureau of the Council for decision,” FIFA said in a statement. “As the situation remains unchanged, the Bureau of the Council has decided to suspend the PFF.”
The international football governing body pays a substantial sum of money to Pakistan for the upkeep of stadiums and to popularize the sport.
The situation has also triggered uncertainty for Pakistani football players, according to local media, who will not be able to play in international tournaments until the issue is resolved.
Asked about the situation, Shah told Arab News he would consult his team before issuing a statement.
“I will have to refer everything to my congress and central committee,” he said. “We are calling a meeting for that and then we will issue a press release.”
“This suspension will only be lifted once FIFA has received confirmation from the normalization committee of the PFF that the PFF’s premises, accounts, administration and communication channels are again under its full control and it can continue to carry out its mandate without further hindrance,” the FIFA statement added.
Pakistan was previously suspended from October 2017 to March 2018 after FIFA objected to a court decision to appoint an outside administrator to run the PFF after another dispute over a contested election.
FIFA suspends Pakistan Football Federation over third-party interference
https://arab.news/jwu7j
FIFA suspends Pakistan Football Federation over third-party interference
- Says suspending PFF because of “hostile takeover” led by group that took over PFF headquarters last month
- Pakistan was previously suspended from October 2017 to March 2018
Bangladesh leader pushes for SAARC revival after meeting Indian, Pakistani dignitaries
- Muhammad Yunus met Pakistan’s parliamentary speaker, Indian FM at Khaleda Zia’s funeral on Wednesday
- SAARC has been dysfunctional since 2016, after India withdrew following a militant attack it blamed on Islamabad
ISLAMABAD: Bangladesh Chief Adviser Muhammad Younus this week pushed for reviving the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) platform after meeting dignitaries from India, Pakistan and other parts of the region.
SAARC has been effectively dysfunctional since 2016, when its planned Islamabad summit collapsed after India withdrew following a militant attack it blamed on Pakistan. Islamabad denied involvement, but New Delhi’s decision prompted Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Bhutan to pull out, leading to the indefinite postponement of the summit.
Younus met Pakistan’s National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq and Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar at former Bangladesh premier Khaleda Zia’s state funeral in Dhaka on Wednesday. The funeral also saw a handshake between the Indian and Pakistani representatives, the first high-level contact between officials of the two countries since their conflict in May.
“During the meetings, Professor Yunus repeatedly emphasized the need to revive the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC),” Yunus’ account on social media platform X said.
“We witnessed a true SAARC spirit at the funeral yesterday,” the account quoted Yunus as saying. “SAARC is still alive. The SAARC spirit is still alive.”
The Bangladesh leader said apart from Jaishankar and Sadiq, representatives from South Asia who attended the funeral included Nepal’s Foreign Minister Bala Nanda Sharma, Sri Lanka’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Employment and Tourism Vijitha Herath, and Maldives Minister of Higher Education and Labor Ali Haider Ahmed.
Yunus said he tried to convene an informal gathering of SAARC leaders on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York last year.
His statement to revive SAARC follows that of Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who earlier this month also called for reviving the South Asian platform.
Sharif’s message last month came as the bloc marked the 40th anniversary of its founding charter. The Pakistani premier stressed the importance of deeper economic collaboration and collective responses to shared regional challenges such as poverty, climate-induced natural disasters, food and energy insecurity, and public-health vulnerabilities.
