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https://www.dawn.com/news/1371891
SLAMABAD: A special parliamentary panel on Monday expressed its displeasure over the overall performance of different national sports federations, while noting that Pakistan athletes in recent years have failed to produce any significant show at international competitions.
The special standing committee of Senate, which held its first meeting here at the Parliament House with Senator Dr Ashok Kumar in the chair, expressed its displeasure over the rapidly declining standard of sports in the country during the last few years.
The committee — tasked with examining the overall working of the national sports federations -- after Monday’s meeting decided that provincial sports ministers or chief secretaries will be summoned to attend the committee’s next meeting in order to get a clearer picture of the condition of sports across the country.
“We have not been able to achieve goals in the sports sector,” said Senator Shibli Faraz.
The committee was also surprised to know that the budget of the Pakistan Sports Board is around Rs930 million, from which a major portion is meant for non-development expenditure like salary payments.
“Out of the total budget, around Rs600 million is allocated for salaries and other expenditures. Therefore, we are left with only around Rs300 million for providing financial assistance to almost 40 [national] sports federations,” said Minister for Inter-provincial Coordination Riaz Hussain Pirzada.
The sports officials from provinces, at the meeting, conveyed it to the committee that provincial budgets were also not adequate for promoting sports at gross roots.
Committee members — Senator Ilyas Bilour and Senator Sajjad Hussain Turi — insisted that besides improving infrastructure and enhancing the sports budget, there was a need to promote games in schools and colleges, particularly in the private sector, which they lamented was not offering any worthwhile sports facilities.
“Despite receiving sports funds from students, the private educational institutions are not offering them sports facilities. [Therefore] the government NOC for running a private school or a college should be linked with provision of proper sports facilities [at the institution],” underlined Bilour.
FIFA BAN ON PAKISTAN
Meanwhile, retired Justice Asad Munir, the administrator of the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF), briefed the committee on the ban world governing body FIFA imposed on Pakistan last month.
He noted that the PFF had been a victim of infighting between two factions — one led by Faisal Saleh Hayat and the other by Arshad Khan Lodi.
“As a result of this infighting the rival groups have been facing each other in litigation with is pending before the Lahore High Court,” Munir said.
“Despite the LHC restraining order, the Hayat faction got the elections held on June 30, 2015 and he was elected as PFF president,” Munir said, adding that in July 2015 the court after declaring the said elections null and void appointed him as the administrator.
Meanwhile, the LHC ordered fresh elections through a committee.
He said that above-mentioned judgment of the court had been in Intra Court Appeal (ICA) in May 2016 and the court restrained the holding of elections through the said committee.
“In February this year, the ICA was disposed of and I was directed to hand over the management of the PFF to the newly elected office-bearers,” retired Justice Munir recalled.
The administrator further told the committee that the order could not be implemented as no elections of the PFF were held due to the interim orders from the ICA bench.
The administrator said that an Civil Petition for Leave to Appeal (CPLA) was filed in the Supreme Court and the apex court on April 6, 2017 remanded the case to ICA bench of the LHC, and also directed that the administrator should continue as such till the decision of the case.
He said the next hearing is on Wednesday.
Pirzada, speaking on the occasion, bemoaned football and footballers in Pakistan were suffering because of the FIFA ban.
“[Presently] there is no funding for the PFF. We are making efforts to pump in some funds into the federation in order to revive some footballing activities,” the minister said.
“The Hayat faction received huge funds from FIFA but instead of expending that money on promoting the game, they [Hayat faction] are using it on hiring expensive lawyers to fight their cases in court.”
INTERNATIONAL CRICKET REVIVAL
Haroon Rasheed, PCB director cricket, briefed the committee about the steps being taken by the Board for promoting the game in the country.
“After the successful visits made by the ICC World XI and Sri Lankan team international cricket has been revived in Pakistan,” former Test cricketer Haroon said. “West Indies is also coming to Pakistan [next year]. Gradually, international cricket will be fully restored in the country.
“The Federation of International Cricketers’ Associations (FICA) has also expressed its satisfaction over the security arrangements made in Pakistan [for above-mentioned international cricket contests].”
Haroon, meanwhile, said there was no job security for Pakistan cricketers, who joined various departments and banks.
“In the past, legendary Javed Miandad, I and others were sacked with a single stroke of the pen,” he said, emphasising that players should not be sacked before their retirement from the game.
The committee on the occasion recommended that departments should be stopped from dismissing sportspersons from job and they must be allowed to serve till their retirement.
SLAMABAD: A special parliamentary panel on Monday expressed its displeasure over the overall performance of different national sports federations, while noting that Pakistan athletes in recent years have failed to produce any significant show at international competitions.
The special standing committee of Senate, which held its first meeting here at the Parliament House with Senator Dr Ashok Kumar in the chair, expressed its displeasure over the rapidly declining standard of sports in the country during the last few years.
The committee — tasked with examining the overall working of the national sports federations -- after Monday’s meeting decided that provincial sports ministers or chief secretaries will be summoned to attend the committee’s next meeting in order to get a clearer picture of the condition of sports across the country.
“We have not been able to achieve goals in the sports sector,” said Senator Shibli Faraz.
The committee was also surprised to know that the budget of the Pakistan Sports Board is around Rs930 million, from which a major portion is meant for non-development expenditure like salary payments.
“Out of the total budget, around Rs600 million is allocated for salaries and other expenditures. Therefore, we are left with only around Rs300 million for providing financial assistance to almost 40 [national] sports federations,” said Minister for Inter-provincial Coordination Riaz Hussain Pirzada.
The sports officials from provinces, at the meeting, conveyed it to the committee that provincial budgets were also not adequate for promoting sports at gross roots.
Committee members — Senator Ilyas Bilour and Senator Sajjad Hussain Turi — insisted that besides improving infrastructure and enhancing the sports budget, there was a need to promote games in schools and colleges, particularly in the private sector, which they lamented was not offering any worthwhile sports facilities.
“Despite receiving sports funds from students, the private educational institutions are not offering them sports facilities. [Therefore] the government NOC for running a private school or a college should be linked with provision of proper sports facilities [at the institution],” underlined Bilour.
FIFA BAN ON PAKISTAN
Meanwhile, retired Justice Asad Munir, the administrator of the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF), briefed the committee on the ban world governing body FIFA imposed on Pakistan last month.
He noted that the PFF had been a victim of infighting between two factions — one led by Faisal Saleh Hayat and the other by Arshad Khan Lodi.
“As a result of this infighting the rival groups have been facing each other in litigation with is pending before the Lahore High Court,” Munir said.
“Despite the LHC restraining order, the Hayat faction got the elections held on June 30, 2015 and he was elected as PFF president,” Munir said, adding that in July 2015 the court after declaring the said elections null and void appointed him as the administrator.
Meanwhile, the LHC ordered fresh elections through a committee.
He said that above-mentioned judgment of the court had been in Intra Court Appeal (ICA) in May 2016 and the court restrained the holding of elections through the said committee.
“In February this year, the ICA was disposed of and I was directed to hand over the management of the PFF to the newly elected office-bearers,” retired Justice Munir recalled.
The administrator further told the committee that the order could not be implemented as no elections of the PFF were held due to the interim orders from the ICA bench.
The administrator said that an Civil Petition for Leave to Appeal (CPLA) was filed in the Supreme Court and the apex court on April 6, 2017 remanded the case to ICA bench of the LHC, and also directed that the administrator should continue as such till the decision of the case.
He said the next hearing is on Wednesday.
Pirzada, speaking on the occasion, bemoaned football and footballers in Pakistan were suffering because of the FIFA ban.
“[Presently] there is no funding for the PFF. We are making efforts to pump in some funds into the federation in order to revive some footballing activities,” the minister said.
“The Hayat faction received huge funds from FIFA but instead of expending that money on promoting the game, they [Hayat faction] are using it on hiring expensive lawyers to fight their cases in court.”
INTERNATIONAL CRICKET REVIVAL
Haroon Rasheed, PCB director cricket, briefed the committee about the steps being taken by the Board for promoting the game in the country.
“After the successful visits made by the ICC World XI and Sri Lankan team international cricket has been revived in Pakistan,” former Test cricketer Haroon said. “West Indies is also coming to Pakistan [next year]. Gradually, international cricket will be fully restored in the country.
“The Federation of International Cricketers’ Associations (FICA) has also expressed its satisfaction over the security arrangements made in Pakistan [for above-mentioned international cricket contests].”
Haroon, meanwhile, said there was no job security for Pakistan cricketers, who joined various departments and banks.
“In the past, legendary Javed Miandad, I and others were sacked with a single stroke of the pen,” he said, emphasising that players should not be sacked before their retirement from the game.
The committee on the occasion recommended that departments should be stopped from dismissing sportspersons from job and they must be allowed to serve till their retirement.
