T

he Sports and Youth Ministry delayed on Friday a decision to revoke the suspension of the Soccer Association of Indonesia (PSSI) as it will need more time to conduct a thorough study demanded by President Joko '€œJokowi'€ Widodo.

'€œI hope for a little more patience from all parties. I will meet with and report the outcome of the study to the President on Monday,'€ Minister Imam Nahrawi said.

The President will make the final call on whether to revoke the suspension.

Among the conditions demanded by the government is for the PSSI to constantly coordinate with the government over the running of Indonesian soccer, to be accountable and transparent and to hold an extraordinary meeting to set up a new organizational structure.

Imam said that in the past two days his side had also conducted a series of meetings with various parties, including the Indonesian Professional Sports Body (BOPI) and the transition team, an ad hoc group that took over the role of the suspended PSSI.

'€œFrom the meetings we came up with the study that consists of, among other things, the chronology of suspension, the legal issues and the hopes of most Indonesians.

Earlier in the day, Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung said that the State Palace would be on the same page with Imam over the future status of the PSSI.

'€œAny decision, whether it is to be issued [by the ministry] or not, will be, without doubt, in line with the President'€™s instruction,'€ said Pramono.

The government suspended the PSSI on April 18, 2015 because of a prolonged conflict between the association and the ministry.

The conflict was triggered by a disagreement over club eligibility for the Indonesian Soccer League (ISL). The PSSI rejected a recommendation by the ministry-sponsored BOPI to exclude Persebaya Surabaya and Arema Malang from the ISL because of club ownership disputes.

All domestic competitions have since grounded to a halt and the ministry has demanded that the PSSI reform its organizational structure.

The ministry'€™s move to suspend the PSSI was seen by FIFA, the world soccer governing body, as undue intervention and therefore it banned Indonesia from international competition.

The decision to unfreeze the PSSI will be crucial for the future of Indonesian soccer as the country is set to host the 2018 Asian Games. As soccer is the most popular sport in the archipelago, it can be presumed that Indonesian people would like to see their team compete.