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FIFA to send a team to Jakarta, says minister
Imam Nahrawi - JP/Jerry AdigunaWorld soccer body FIFA will send a team to Jakarta to talk about Indonesiaâs suspension from international competition, according to Youth and Sport Minister Imam Nahrawi
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Imam Nahrawi - JP/Jerry Adiguna
World soccer body FIFA will send a team to Jakarta to talk about Indonesia's suspension from international competition, according to Youth and Sport Minister Imam Nahrawi.
The minister made his statement in response to a suggestion that Indonesia might face the grim prospect of having no national soccer team at the next Asian Games that Indonesia will host in 2018, if the ban remained in place.
'Don't worry about that. We shall have a team for the Asian Games. There must be a solution to the situation. FIFA will send a team to Jakarta,' he said when hosting a group of reporters at his retreat in the Widya Candra complex on Wednesday evening.
The minister stopped short of giving a timetable for FIFA's planned visit, and the national soccer association PSSI lambasted the report as baseless.
'PSSI will know about any planned visit by FIFA and the AFC [Asian Football Confederation]. We regularly report to FIFA about the development of issues in Indonesia. There's no such plan by FIFA officials to come here,' PSSI secretary general Azwan Karim told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.
Wednesday's gathering was organized by Imam to inform those concerned on the progress of Indonesia's preparations for the Asian Games, as well as the government's policy in regard to the Olympics.
He said that the ministry would draft a pension scheme for Indonesian Olympians with a view to providing medal winners with a monthly stipend for the remainder of their life.
Regarding the Asian Games, he revealed the government's decision to build an athletes' village at Kemayoran. He also discussed the execution of financial obligations to Olympic Council of Asia.
'We have allocated Rp 220 billion to be sent to OCA as a required deposit for hosting the Asian Games,' he said
He also said that the Games logo and mascot would be launched later this month.
'To generate the spirit of the Games, we are going to roll a ball with diameter of three meters to each of the provinces. We will begin the campaign on Sept. 9, which coincides with National Sports Day, until Aug. 18 2018.
'The Asian Games is important for us and the nation's integrity is at stake. But its significance is currently being overwhelmed by soccer news,' he said.
'I have given 65 percent of my attention to the Asian Games. The rest of my attention has been directed toward soccer and youth affairs,' he added.
Discussing the cause of the ongoing national soccer crisis, Imam argued that if PSSI had excluded two clubs from the Indonesian Super League (ISL) due to 'ownership disputes' as recommended by the ministry, Indonesia would have avoided the suspension. PSSI's rejection of the ministry's recommendation prompted the suspension.
However, FIFA viewed the situation differently. FIFA judged the ministry's move as a form of government interference in soccer affairs, which is considered a violation of FIFA statues.
