Agum vows to name committed people to PSSI
JAKARTA (JP): National congress members from the All- Indonesian Soccer Federation (PSSI) officially elected Agum Gumelar to serve a four-year term at the end of their three-day congress on Wednesday.
Soon after his election at Hotel Indonesia in Central Jakarta, Agum told a news conference that he would select committed assistants in PSSI to improve the condition of national soccer.
He said both familiar and new members would be on the committee.
Agum, who was considered the only strong candidate to head the 69-year-old federation, will receive a maximum of 30 days to set up his executive board committee. Agum replaced Azwar Anas as PSSI chief for 1995 to 1999 in October last year.
"My decision on the committee's members might not be to everybody's wishes, but I will try to minimalize any dissatisfaction. It's impossible for me to totally renew the committee because some former members are still needed to accomplish the program," he said.
"I don't want the federation to totter."
He added that he would seek input from soccer experts to select the right people to help him implement the PSSI guidelines endorsed on Wednesday.
"My eyes and ears are open to understand people's aspirations," said Agum, who is also the governor of the National Resilience Institute (Lemhanas).
Agum said he would ask government agencies to help finance soccer development in their respective areas.
At the end of the congress, accountant Asep Suryana and the former director of national cement manufacturer PT Semen Gresik, Sabar Safaruddin, were appointed as members of PSSI's auditors.
The congress' other recommendations included the setting up of provincial chapters to replace provincial boards of commissioners, the plan to create two national soccer teams to recruit talented players from outside Java and the changing of PSSI's name to the Football Association of Indonesia.
The guidelines will be specified in the work plan by the new members of the executive board committees and representatives from provincial chapters.
Despite the criticism from local media that congress members lacked fresh ideas to reform the federation but merely signed off on the proposals from the outgoing PSSI working committees, congress deputy organizer Tondo Widodo expressed his satisfaction that the event proceeded "smoothly".
The meeting, which was scheduled to end in the evening, was expedited to end before the afternoon. Many sports reporters were dismayed to find the meeting room empty when they arrived after lunch time.
Tondo said that the recommendations from the two commissions were accepted in a plenary meeting on Wednesday morning without significant objection from the members. The participants also immediately agreed to elect Agum as chairman. (ivy)