Soccer Association of Indonesia (PSSI) chief Edy Rahmayadi has dug in his heels, saying he will not step down from his position despite public pressure amid a stumbling national team and a match-fixing case in the country’s second-tier league.

The North Sumatra governor and former Army Strategic Reserves commander said he would stay in the position until his term ends in 2020.

“I wanted to step down, but not anymore. I’ve changed my mind, and I want to end my duty in 2020,” Edy told journalists at his gubernatorial office in Medan, North Sumatra, on Wednesday evening.

Public pressure had been mounting for Edy to resign from his PSSI role after a series of unfortunate events in Indonesian soccer this year alone.

It began on Sept. 23 with the death of Harringga Sirila, 23, a Persija Jakarta fan at a Liga 1 match between Persija and rival team Persib Bandung in Bandung, West Java. Harringga was beaten to death on that Sunday afternoon by Persib Bandung fans, known as Bobotoh.

Later, the national team of Indonesia failed to reach the knockout stage of the 2018 ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) Championship, a big letdown as the squad had finished as runner-up in the previous edition of the AFF event in 2016.

The situation got uglier when a case of match-fixing in the country’s second-tier Liga 2 was revealed. The PSSI’s disciplinary committee sanctioned Hidayat, a member of the association’s executive committee, on Tuesday, after he was found guilty of attempting to bribe Madura FC coach Januar Herwanto.
Hidayat, who announced his resignation two days before he was sanctioned, was banned from participating in any soccer-related activities for three years. He was also fined Rp 150 million (US$10,414) for attempting to persuade Madura FC to let PSS Sleman win a match between the two sides in the league.

Brushing off calls for him to resign, Edy said he was staying, because he wanted to lead the national squad to the highest-level international tournament, the FIFA World Cup, by 2030. To reach that goal, Edy said, he had devised a road map for Indonesian soccer up until 2045.

“So, whoever leads the PSSI in the future, he or she will have a guideline for reaching the main goal,” he added.

The chairman said the country had seen blooming young players aged 16 to 19 who would be the backbone when the national team rises in 2045. Edy plans to help the national team reach the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, before qualifying for the 2030 World Cup.

He admitted that the country still lacked soccer players when compared to developed countries.

As of 2016, Indonesia had 67,000 registered players among its 250 million population. Meanwhile, the Netherlands had 1.2 million players with a population of 16.7 million, Spain had 4.1 million out of 46.8 million and even Thailand had 1.3 million players out of a population of 64.4 million, said Edy.

He went on to say that Indonesia also had a limited number of coached at 197 people, while Spain had 22,000, Thailand had 1,100 and Malaysia had 1,810.

In terms of facilities, Indonesia has only two FIFA-standard stadiums plus 23 usable pitches. Meanwhile, Spain has 109 stadiums of FIFA standard, the Netherlands has 45 and Singapore has 21.

Edy said the aforementioned facts were among the issues hampering the development of Indonesian soccer.

“So, please leave the PSSI alone just because you are not on the same boat with Edy,” he added.

Meanwhile, secretary-general Ratu Tisha said that under Edy’s patronage, the national teams had reached new milestones, such as the round of 16 at the recent Asian Games, and ranked eighth in Asia for the U-16 category.

“Those achievements, which we reached this year, are the first in the history of the PSSI,” she added.

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