Lahore - The executive committee (EXCO) meeting of the Pakistan Football Federation held here at the PFF Headquarters Saturday under the chair of its president Makhdoom Syed Faisal Saleh after a gap of 3 years.
Those who attended the EXCO meeting were senior vice president Syed Khadim Ali Shah, vice president Madam Rubina Irfan, vice president Sardar Naveed Haider Khan, M Jan Mari, Dr Fazal, Col (R) Ijaz Ul Haq, Arif Rahim, Ayaz Zahoor, Anwar Qureshi and Saleem Shaikh.
FIFA has restored the membership rights of the PFF, which were suspended in October 2017 after few days of restoration of Faisal Saleh Hayat-led body by Lahore High Court Div Bench.
Faisal Saleh Hayat formally announced the starting of domestic and international activities of football. “The PFF National Challenge Cup will be the opening event of our football activities which will be followed by other domestic and international football activities including Pakistan Premier League, National Women Championship, Referee and Coaching Courses while Pakistan National Football Teams will also participate in Asian Games and SAFF Championship and Women U-16 and Women U-19 SAFF Championships” the PFF chief announced.
Faisal thanked to Almighty and the entire football family for supporting him in tough times. “I am especially thankful to FIFA president Infantino Gianni and AFC chief Shaikh Salman Bin Ebrahim Al-Khalifa for their support throughout the difficult times,” he said and added: “They have kept endorsing our principle stand in the odd moments of Pakistan football.”
The PFF chief said that during the past 3 years, building of PFF Headquarters is badly damaged and a private company has estimated Rs 33 million for its rehabilitation. “We have written a letter to the AFC for issuing a special grant to bring the PFF Headquarters back into its previous state,” he said.
“We are also thankful to the Division Bench, Lahore High Court, which has removed the administrator, who did nothing for almost 3 years but wasted Rs 35 million on his pay and allowances out of the FIFA grants provided to PFF only for the development of Pakistan football,” he added.
In Executive committee meeting, restoration of football in Pakistan was discussed while approval of appointment of Shehzad Anwar as Director Technical PFF and Sajjad Mehmood as Director Competitions was also given in the meeting.
At this occasion, the EXCO also prayed for the souls of departed Advocate Asma Jahangir, footballers Shahlyla Baloch, Tauseef Ahmed and Nasir and PFF Staff Babar Khan. President PFF announced that U-16 Women Championship will be dedicated to Late Shahlyla Baloch for good. He also admired the services of Rubina Irfan’s family (mother of late Shahlyla Baloch) while expressing PFF’s deepest sympathies to her family, for the development of football in Pakistan.
Faisal also said that the halting of football during the previous 3 years has demolished the foundations of football which we laid in the last decade doing all the hard work. He has also questioned the elements who have caused the destruction of Pakistan football that what they have got out of this all except bringing bad name on the country.
Talking about Leisure League 2017, in which 6-7 foreign players participated and Coca Cola FIFA Trophy Tour of Pakistan in February 2018, he said that these were just cosmetics events contributing nothing to the development of football in Pakistan while he was also confident to take the football of Pakistan to new heights through hard work and dedication.