Reconciliation is the key to ending the Indonesian Football Association’s leadership crisis, officials and observers said, after FIFA gave the troubled body another chance to hold an election.
Sutiyoso, one of 15 nominees for the top post at the association, known as the PSSI, said on Tuesday that all factions should get together and set aside their personal interests for the future of the sport in the country.
“FIFA delivered a clear warning that we will be suspended if we fail to hold an election again,” said Sutiyoso, a former chairman of Indonesian Super League club Persija Jakarta and a former governor of the capital. “We should all sit down and reconcile because it would be stupid if we fail to hold the election again.”
“The interests of football should come first or we’ll sink deeper in this mess,” he added.
Fans had feared the worst after the association failed to hold its election on May 20. However, on Monday, the FIFA, the sport’s world governing body, gave the country another chance to set its affairs in order and extended the election deadline to June 30.
FIFA, however, issued a warning on its Web site: “The executive committee decided that, should the conditions not be met by June 30, 2011, the PSSI would automatically be suspended on July 1.”
A suspension would mean the national team and domestic clubs would be banned from all international tournaments sanctioned by FIFA. That would jeopardize the country’s participation in the second round of the 2014 World Cup Asian qualifiers, scheduled for the end of July, with the national team set to meet Turkmenistan.
Conflicts arose after several members of a pro-reform group within the PSSI, dubbed the Group of 78, insisted on nominating tycoon Arifin Panigoro, who created the breakaway Indonesian Premier League, and Army Chief of Staff Gen. George Toisutta to lead the association.
Last year, Arifin formed a consortium that financed 19 clubs in the rebel IPL, which is now halfway through its debut season.
FIFA reiterated on Monday that Arifin and the general, along with former PSSI chairman Nurdin Halid and ex-PSSI vice president Nirwan Bakrie, were still banned from the June election.
Another candidate, Golkar Party politician Adhan Dambea, urged everyone involved in domestic football to follow FIFA’s instructions.
“I hope fellow members of the association consider the greater good for the sake of national football,” he said. “I also hope all parties can accept these decisions with [an open] heart.”
Indonesian Olympic Committee (KOI) president Rita Subowo said she would try to mediate all PSSI disputes so the election could run smoothly.
“I have yet to meet with the Group of 78 but I’ve talked with Arifin and [Toisutta],” she said. “We’re still trying to find a way out and we’ve planned for another meeting. I have even talked to President [Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono] to discuss this.”
She declined to give details about her meeting with the president, but said the government was trying to prevent Indonesia from being sanctioned by FIFA.
However, she said it would be difficult to resolve the matter because the Group of 78 remained adamant in seeing either Toisutta or Arifin lead the PSSI.
“Besides [the pair], there’s no single candidate who has the experience and ability to run the league without government funding,” said Saleh Ismail Mukadar, a reform group member. “That’s why we insist on nominating them since they are our only hope for change.”
Meanwhile, the PSSI normalization committee, which was tasked by FIFA to handle the vote, said it had yet to decide on how the election should proceed.
F.X. Hadi Rudyatmo, a committee member, said they were waiting for their chairman, Agum Gumelar, and PSSI secretary general Joko Driyono to return on Friday from the FIFA congress in Zurich.
Sutiyoso, one of 15 nominees for the top post at the association, known as the PSSI, said on Tuesday that all factions should get together and set aside their personal interests for the future of the sport in the country.
“FIFA delivered a clear warning that we will be suspended if we fail to hold an election again,” said Sutiyoso, a former chairman of Indonesian Super League club Persija Jakarta and a former governor of the capital. “We should all sit down and reconcile because it would be stupid if we fail to hold the election again.”
“The interests of football should come first or we’ll sink deeper in this mess,” he added.
Fans had feared the worst after the association failed to hold its election on May 20. However, on Monday, the FIFA, the sport’s world governing body, gave the country another chance to set its affairs in order and extended the election deadline to June 30.
FIFA, however, issued a warning on its Web site: “The executive committee decided that, should the conditions not be met by June 30, 2011, the PSSI would automatically be suspended on July 1.”
A suspension would mean the national team and domestic clubs would be banned from all international tournaments sanctioned by FIFA. That would jeopardize the country’s participation in the second round of the 2014 World Cup Asian qualifiers, scheduled for the end of July, with the national team set to meet Turkmenistan.
Conflicts arose after several members of a pro-reform group within the PSSI, dubbed the Group of 78, insisted on nominating tycoon Arifin Panigoro, who created the breakaway Indonesian Premier League, and Army Chief of Staff Gen. George Toisutta to lead the association.
Last year, Arifin formed a consortium that financed 19 clubs in the rebel IPL, which is now halfway through its debut season.
FIFA reiterated on Monday that Arifin and the general, along with former PSSI chairman Nurdin Halid and ex-PSSI vice president Nirwan Bakrie, were still banned from the June election.
Another candidate, Golkar Party politician Adhan Dambea, urged everyone involved in domestic football to follow FIFA’s instructions.
“I hope fellow members of the association consider the greater good for the sake of national football,” he said. “I also hope all parties can accept these decisions with [an open] heart.”
Indonesian Olympic Committee (KOI) president Rita Subowo said she would try to mediate all PSSI disputes so the election could run smoothly.
“I have yet to meet with the Group of 78 but I’ve talked with Arifin and [Toisutta],” she said. “We’re still trying to find a way out and we’ve planned for another meeting. I have even talked to President [Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono] to discuss this.”
She declined to give details about her meeting with the president, but said the government was trying to prevent Indonesia from being sanctioned by FIFA.
However, she said it would be difficult to resolve the matter because the Group of 78 remained adamant in seeing either Toisutta or Arifin lead the PSSI.
“Besides [the pair], there’s no single candidate who has the experience and ability to run the league without government funding,” said Saleh Ismail Mukadar, a reform group member. “That’s why we insist on nominating them since they are our only hope for change.”
Meanwhile, the PSSI normalization committee, which was tasked by FIFA to handle the vote, said it had yet to decide on how the election should proceed.
F.X. Hadi Rudyatmo, a committee member, said they were waiting for their chairman, Agum Gumelar, and PSSI secretary general Joko Driyono to return on Friday from the FIFA congress in Zurich.
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