Nurdin submits letter of resignation

Nurdin submits letter of resignation

JAKARTA (JP): The Soccer Association of Indonesia (PSSI)
official in charge of athletes development, Nurdin Halid,
submitted his resignation Tuesday evening amidst pressure
critical of some of his decisions.

"I have to consider his resignation carefully. I will decide
about it in one or two days," said PSSI chairman, Agum Gumelar,
on Wednesday after signing a Rp 10 billion (US$1.05 million)
sponsorship deal with state-owned Bank Mandiri.

Nurdin -- who was also chief de mission of the 2000 Tiger Cup
in Thailand and the 2000 Asian Cup final in Lebanon -- was under
fire for his alleged decision to discharge coach Nandar Iskandar
after Indonesia lost 1-4 to Thailand in the qualifying round.

The move was harshly criticized as it was against the
association's rule that only PSSI chairman has the authority to
fire Nurdin, national team director Muhammad Zein and coach
Nandar. Indonesia was runner-up after losing 1-4 to host Thailand
in the final last Saturday.

Nurdin told a media briefing last month that he would resign
if Indonesia failed to win the Tiger Cup.

Agum said it would be hard for him to allow Nurdin out of
PSSI.

"I need a soccer enthusiast who can assist me in organizing
the national soccer program. Moreover, being a PSSI official is a
voluntary job and one should realize that he or she does not
receive a proper salary."

Agum did not say that Nurdin was trying to fulfill his promise
by withdrawing from PSSI.

"He (Nurdin) felt he had failed. But we have to consider this
matter clearly. We have to agree that the Tiger Cup result was
not a total failure."

Nandar, who immediately returned to Jakarta after Zein told
him to take a break in the remaining matches, had reported his
situation to Agum last week.

"I can understand what they did. But as chairman, I should
thank Pak Nurdin, Pak Zein and Pak Nandar."

Meanwhile, Bank Mandiri has agreed to increase its sponsorship
from Rp 7.3 billion last season to Rp 10 billion for the 2001
national soccer league. The league will retain its name as Liga
Bank Mandiri.

"Our sponsorship is purely on a business basis. Our bank is
more popular since we sponsored the event. We earned Rp 40
billion last season and the amount was much more than our
contribution," said Bank Mandiri President E.C.W. Neloe. (ivy)