Protest held against PFF normalisation committee [The Nation]

LAHORE    –    A strong protest is lodged against the PFF normalization committee here on Wednesday.

“The committee is totally biased and the only way out is to bring new members into it having a neutral approach,” the protestors, included football clubs’ organizers, players and persons from civil society, demanded from FIFA during the protest.

They were holding placards and chanting against the committee, declaring it a biased and one-sided forum basically formed by the world governing body, FIFA, to bring the abnormal situation of football to a normal one in Pakistan.

PFA Coordinator and Ex-international footballer Asghar Khan Anjum said that the formation of normalization committee by FIFA was welcomed by the football family in Pakistan hoping that it would end the five-year long debacle, which has caused huge damage to the game in the country, but it went otherwise, when such elements were announced as the chairman and member of the normalization committee, who had obvious ties with one faction, Ashfaq Hussain group.

“We have no doubt that this committee cannot do any good for the settlement of football issues in Pakistan, rather it will further the problems,” he said and added: “The whole football community in Pakistan knows that chairman of the committee Humza Khan has very close and undeniable ties with Taha Alizai, who was legal counsel of Ashfaq Hussain.”

He said another committee member Col (R) Mujahid Tareen has always been a close support to Ashfaq group. He also raised a serious question that how come a person, who is a member of the committee, can become the PFF general secretary at the same time.

Meanwhile, alike activity was also reported in Dera Ghazi Khan, where the members of district football association along with football players expressed their anger over the normalization committee.

Published in The Nation, 3 October 2019