Ismet insists on relinquishing PSSI seat
Ismet insists on relinquishing PSSI seat
JAKARTA (JP): Competition and league manager of the All-
Indonesia Soccer Association, Ismet Tahir, is insisting on
resigning from the soccer body and says it is his own decision.
"Nobody is to blame except me. It's my guilty feeling that
makes me resign," Ismet announced on Friday. It was Ismet's first
public announcement since his letter of resignation addressed to
chairman of the association, Azwar Anas, was leaked early this
week.
Ismet appeared to mock a controversial decree signed by Azwar
last month, which annulled a mandate he signed banning
international striker Kurniawan Dwi Yulianto from joining Pelita
Jaya club.
"The issuance of the decree which confirms that Kurniawan's
move to Pelita is legal means that I made a mistake. That's why I
have to step down," said Ismet, a leading figure in the national
soccer body in the past decade.
Ismet opposed Kurniawan's move to Pelita after he failed to
show the mandatory International Transfer Certificate within five
days as required. However, a regulation of the soccer association
says that it is a chairman's prerogative to settle the case.
Kurniawan, one of the country's young booters who trained in
Italy a few years ago, went to Pelita after finishing his two-
year contract with Swiss premiership side FC Lucerne in May.
The 20-year-old player stayed with his new club for a month
without ever playing a national league match, before Pelita and
Italy's Sampdoria struck a US$50,000 deal to take him to the
Italian premier league for three years starting from December.
Ismet said that he met Azwar to discuss his letter of
resignation on Thursday. "He asked me to drop my plan. But he
talk did not go into detail because he had to visit an ailing
relative," Ismet was quoted by Antara as saying.
He denied rumors linking his resignation with his supposedly
unpleasant relationship with Pelita's owner Nirwan Bakrie, a
renowned conglomerate who sponsored the Italian stint for
national junior booters. (amd)