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Race for PSSI’s top job heats up amid calls for overhaul
The race is on for the chief of Indonesian soccer's governing body, even as critics continue to raise their voices for complete reform.
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Erick Thohir speaks in his capacity as chairman of the Indonesia Asian Games 2018 Organizing Committe (INASGOC) about organizing the 2018 Asian Games during a press conference in Jakarta, in this file photo. (AFP/Adek Berry)
A
big showdown is on the cards as the Soccer Association of Indonesia (PSSI) seeks a new chief at its extraordinary congress (KLB) next month, with five candidates throwing their hat in the ring amid calls for sweeping reforms in the beleaguered federation.
Faced with widespread criticism over the mishandling of the deadly tragedy last October at Kanjuruhan Stadium in East Java, the PSSI has been struggling to turn over a new leaf after repeated failings on the international stage and years of entrenched clientelism that has stunted the growth of a sport religiously followed by a vast majority of Indonesians.
A new figure on the association’s hot seat might offer it a chance at a new start, and a bevy of politically wired individuals are contesting the upcoming race.
Among them is incumbent Regional Representatives Council (DPD) Speaker La Nyalla Mattalitti, who led the PSSI between 2015 and 2016, and State-Owned Enterprises Minister Erick Thohir, a noted sports fan with ample experience running big events and soccer clubs.
Doni Setiabudi, CEO of the Bandung Premier League amateur soccer competition, sports promoter Arif Putra Wicaksono and Gerindra Party politician Fary Djemy Francis round off the shortlist.
All five candidates must first be vetted before they can partake in the PSSI congress on Feb. 16, when the association’s voting members will decide on their next leader.
In the aftermath of the Kanjuruhan stadium disaster that killed 135 people on Oct. 1, 2022, the PSSI was frequently criticized for not taking responsibility over its role in the incident.
