ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Football Federation Norma­lisation Committee chairman Haroon Malik has failed to give the election date for the country’s football governing body, saying it is not possible to complete the electoral process before the NC term expires on June 30. 

Speaking at a press conference along with Minister for Inter-Provincial Coordi­nation Ehsan-ur-Rehman Mazari, Haroon announced that the elections for district football associations would be held on May 15.

“In the first step we are holding the elections for district associations,” he said while not giving any date for PFF governing body elections.

He affirmed that the mandate of FIFA-accredited NC will expire in June this year but it was not possible to hold the election before it.

“The constitution is clear regarding the football federation’s elections. Eight departments and four provinces have voting rights for the process.”

Moreover, he added that the ministry of IPC was extending its full support to the PFF NC for holding elections.

IPC minister Mazari, who had given seven days ultimatum to Haroon for announcing the election date last week, said FIFA blocked the funds of the PFF for its inability to hold the elections.

“We want PFF elections at the earliest,” he said, adding they want to promote the sports in the country.

It may be noted here that the football affairs in Pakistan have been mired in crisis since 2015 in the absence of an elected body. FIFA appointed a Normalisation Committee in September 2019 to put the country’s football back on track. FIFA also suspended PFF membership for a 15-month period during that time after the Normalisation Committee was thrown out of office.

The FIFA suspension was only lifted in June last year and extended the mandate of the NC by one year after it regained control of PFF in May.

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