AAAA seeks support for reelection of Bob Hasan
AAAA seeks support for reelection of Bob Hasan
JAKARTA (JP): The Asian Amateur Athletics Association (AAAA)
is drumming up support for the reelection of Mohamad "Bob" Hasan
as the organization's chairman.
AAAA vice president Kadit Bin Altami of Qatar is in Jakarta to
lobby the state minister of youth affairs and sports, the
National Sports Council (KONI) chairman and the attorney general
to clear the way for Hasan's reelection.
Bin Altami said on Thursday the purpose for his visit to
Jakarta was also to supervise preparations for the organization's
congress on Aug. 2 and the Asian Championships from Aug. 3 to
Aug. 5.
"Bob Hasan has supported athletics development in Asia and
the world. My colleagues in AAAA asked me to visit Indonesia to
support Hasan's reelection. There are three people from India,
Pakistan and Kuwait who want to become president of AAAA. We
didn't want Indonesia to lose its presidential seat," he said.
Hasan, who is also chairman of the Indonesian Amateur
Athletics Association (PASI) and a member of the International
Olympics Committee, was detained on March 28 after being named a
suspect in a US$87 million fraud case involving a government
contract to perform aerial mapping and airborne radar imaging of
the country's forestry resources.
The contract was awarded to Hasan, the Indonesian Forest
Concessionaires Association chairman, in 1994 and the project was
carried out by PT Mapindo Parama with money from the government's
reforestation fund.
"Some people will take advantage of Hasan's situation because
they want to become president (of AAAA). It's not fair
considering what Hasan has done over the last nine years. We are
not talking about politics. We see things from a sports point of
view. Hasan is a good man in sports and he has helped lots of
people," Altami said.
State Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports Mahadi Sinambela
said: "It's a legal problem. I prefer Pak Hasan be released from
detention. But we must leave the problem to the court of law to
see if he is guilty.
"Ethically, a guilty person must not be elected chairman of an
organization."
Hasan's lawyer Augustinus Hutajulu told The Jakarta Post that
Altami acquired a special permit from Attorney General Marzuki
Darusman to visit Hasan.
"The visit was to discuss the announcement of the four
candidates for AAAA's upcoming presidential election. As the
current president, Pak Bob should make the announcement,"
Augustinus said.
KONI chairman Wismoyo Arismunandar said PASI's success in
hosting the Asian Championships, which will also serve as a warm-
up for the Olympic Games in Sydney in September, would
demonstrate Indonesia's ability to host international events
despite the security concerns of participants. (01/yan)