Zahir requests Blatter to send FIFA official [The News]

KARACHI: Senior vice-president of Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) and a candidate for the PFF presidency Syed Zahir Shah has requested FIFA president Sepp Blatter to send his representative to Pakistan to evaluate the worsening situation of football in the country.

“In the spirit of dialogue and as stakeholders of football we request you to send a FIFA representative to Pakistan to evaluate the current situation or give us an opportunity to brief FIFA officials in Zurich in person so we can receive the appropriate feedback,” Shah wrote to Blatter on Wednesday.

“Given the gravity of the situation we as members of PFF and as a part of the global football family are looking to seek guidance from FIFA, our parent international body with the sole intention of receiving your advice. As our president we not only request for your consideration but in fact count on it. We are firmly aware that you believe in resolving situations through dialogue as you have shown recently with your commendable football diplomacy in the Middle East between two Member Associations,” the letter said, a copy of which is available with ‘The News’.

Zahir tried to intimate FIFA of the various alleged irregularities “committed by PFF under its president Faisal Saleh Hayat.

“By authority vested in them as per constitution of PFF, article 30, the majority of the members of PFF called for and held an extraordinary congress meeting in order to take steps to halt the rampant corruption in the PFF and to rectify unconstitutional steps taken by the former PFF president Faisal Saleh Hayat,” he said.

“This included the annulment of PFF disciplinary committee constituted by Hayat as its members were also members of the congress which is in blatant violation of the PFF statutes as they require members of judicial committees to be independent individuals, not members of the PFF congress,” the letter said. “There were various other electoral irregularities as earlier intimated to FIFA (and also carried by the minutes of the above mentioned congress) forwarded to FIFA,” it said.

The Lahore High Court (LHC) on June 29, before whom various petitions including petitions filed by Hayat were fixed, had stayed the PFF elections scheduled for June 30, it said.

“In a blatant disregard of the court order Hayat went on to conduct an election in the absence of majority of the designated voters. The AFC sent its representative Sanjeevan for the election as an observer who had informed media that he was representing FIFA as well,” the letter said.

“Sanjeevan is a close colleague of Hasan Khan, who works with him in the AFC and whose father Sardar Naveed Haider Khan is a close ally of Hayat. Naved got himself elected as president Punjab Football Association (PFA) and PFF vice-president in the elections which were not in consonance with the PFF statutes,” it added. “Despite various attempts Sanjeevan did not respond to our comments regarding this situation. We also emailed him a letter on the eve of the so-called elections and also informed him of the court stay order…. As football officials and as responsible citizens we understand our responsibility to adhere to judicial orders,” the letter said.

“As elected members of PFF we are writing to you to seek your guidance in resolving the current situation of the governance of football as per PFF and FIFA statutes….

“Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) is investigating against Hayat and the affairs of PFF under his former leadership. This is further demonstrated by the fact that currently all bank accounts related to Hayat’s regime have been frozen pursuant to strict orders of the FIA,” the letter said.

“Documents related to corrupt practices by Hayat have already been sent to FIFA’s ethics committee. There has [sic] been some suggestions of individuals taking over the offices of the PFF and we would like to highlight that all the actions have been done through the decisions of the PFF’s extraordinary congress with the presence and consent of the majority of members and are being implemented by elected officials of PFF congress, not outsiders,” the letter said.