The head coach of Indonesia’s national soccer team, Alfred Riedl, was recently fired following a mix-up over his contract. The National Soccer Association (PSSI) said Riedl had signed his contract with former PSSI deputy chairman Nirwan D. Bakrie personally, not in the latter’s capacity as PSSI executive. The PSSI is currently working to reform itself and recast its image. Many believe that its decision to fire Riedl, who briefly raised the Indonesian squad’s profile with a second-place finish at the AFF Suzuki Cup in 2010, was one of its reforming efforts. Do you think the PSSI made the right decision by terminating Riedl’s position? Will it contribute positively to the PSSI’s reforms?
CON
Firing Riedl is not the answer to creating a new PSSI image
Laura Margaretha Siringgo-ringgo
Tarakanita Secretary Academy
Jakarta
I absolutely disagree with the National Soccer Association’s decision; we all know that Nurdin Halid is not a good guy. But that doesn’t mean that the coach during his era should be fired as well, especially when the reason does not make sense. It may be necessary to get rid of Nurdin Halid people to create a new image of PSSI, but I don’t think it was necessary to discharge Alfred Riedl.
Indonesia is a well-mannered country, but what we did to Riedl was impolite. After all the things he did for Indonesia, this is how we pay him back? Indonesia achieved runner-up status in the AFF Suzuki Cup thanks to Riedl; he was the one who trained the national team until they won such an achievement. Every time I read or hear about Riedl now, I’m so ashamed. How would other countries consider Indonesia in this case? Perhaps an ungrateful country? I don’t want that.
I thought that it was the wrong decision to dismiss him. Based on what I saw, he was a cold-blooded coach and he was well matched for Indonesian soccer. Maybe we were only runners-up at the AFC, but he was changing our team into a better one. If we could have just waited a little longer, I am sure he could have contributed more for Indonesian soccer than just a runner-up position. Why couldn’t we wait until the World Cup qualifier? And see what happens then?
PRO
Riedl’s lack of achievement had him kicked out from the PSSI
Ananda Nurahmi BN
Indonesian Literature
State University of Jakarta
Well, this is not an unusual case; you can easily find similar cases in other countries or soccer teams. I always thought that the national soccer coach was a position with high turnover. That is the right thing to do if the aim is to improve the national team’s achievements; a team that is still far behind other countries in Asia. But maybe the way in which we treated Alfred Riedl was crass. We are Indonesians, who always say that we advocate polite behavior, so it is a shame that Riedl didn’t receive a proper farewell.
But it is so vague if the reason to send him home is because of his temperament. Somehow, with the previous images of PSSI — during the Nurdin Halid era — the new PSSI managers seemed to be paranoid in thinking that by keeping Riedl was bad, as if it meant inheriting Nurdin’s way of managing the national team. Djohar Arifin once said that Nurdin didn’t leave him anything, not even a single item of data, including Riedl’s contract. That’s why if the reason is because of Riedl’s temperament, it doesn’t make sense to me.
Nevertheless, I thought that it was the right decision to send Riedl home, because of the team’s lack of achievement. While he definitely brought a positive thing to our national soccer team -- and I always believe that nothing is wasted -- dismissing him is also a positive opportunity to transform our soccer team. We’re chasing a bigger achievement than just being runners-up in the AFC; our target is the World Cup and to achieve that, we have to do something. What the PSSI needs to do is to reform. They just have to move on.
The head coach of Indonesia’s national soccer team, Alfred Riedl, was recently fired following a mix-up over his contract. The National Soccer Association (PSSI) said Riedl had signed his contract with former PSSI deputy chairman Nirwan D. Bakrie personally, not in the latter’s capacity as PSSI executive. The PSSI is currently working to reform itself and recast its image. Many believe that its decision to fire Riedl, who briefly raised the Indonesian squad’s profile with a second-place finish at the AFF Suzuki Cup in 2010, was one of its reforming efforts. Do you think the PSSI made the right decision by terminating Riedl’s position? Will it contribute positively to the PSSI’s reforms?
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President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono awarded First Lady Ani Yudhoyono with the highest state honor conferred on civilians for her “extraordinary service” to the country. Ani said she – and the wives of other ministers — was active in social affairs, including healthcare, education and the environment in order to improve the welfare of Indonesians. The award brings with it certain honors, including the right to be buried at the Kalibata Heroes Cemetery. Other recipients of honors included former first lady Sinta Nuriyah, and Taufiq Kiemas, the husband of former president Megawati Soekarnoputri. Give us your opinion about awarding medals to the spouses of presidents. Whatever your stance, please give us your argument on who is, or should be, eligible for such awards. The best submissions will be published on Sept. 18.
