PSSI to set up provincial chapters for old 'Komda'

JAKARTA (JP): Members of the All-Indonesian Soccer Federation (PSSI) will recommend the setting up of provincial chapters to replace the current system of boards of commissioners (Komda) in a plenary meeting on Wednesday.

PSSI spokesman Tondo Widodo said on Tuesday that the federation's commission A also voted against a proposal to select executive members who would elect the chairman.

Under current guidelines, congress members elect the new chairman who then appoints the executive board.

The decision was reached in the plenary meeting on the second day of the three-day PSSI national congress at Hotel Indonesia in Central Jakarta. The 257 members grouped in commission A discussed the organizational issues, the work reports of the PSSI's executive board for the 1995 to 1999 term and the work plan for the 1999 to 2003 term.

Another commission B meeting discussed technical guidelines for the work plan. The discussions were closed to the media.

Summaries of the discussions will be presented at a plenary meeting on Wednesday, which will bring the members of the two commissions on the same table.

At the congress' conclusion on Wednesday, the members will ratify the accountability report of the outgoing executive board's committee and dismiss it at the same time, elect the new chairman and ratify decisions of the congress.

Tondo said that it took about two hours for the head of the meeting to convince all members about the importance of giving greater autonomy to provincial chapters.

He said that officials of soccer clubs and federations were confused about their status should the commissions be changed to provincial chapters.

"There are no representing principles in PSSI. All the soccer clubs and federations are still under PSSI's supervision. They have the right to vote in the national congress.

"The federations will no longer settle in the regencies but in the cities where they develop and do their soccer activities," he told a media briefing.

He said that the status of the players, competition rules and transfer of players would be elucidated before the sixth Indonesian Soccer League (Ligina) which is scheduled for November.

Tondo said that some members raised a proposal to select the executive board members who would elect the chairman. The proposals were later decided in a vote.

"We are using the standard pattern of the FIFA and Asian Football Confederation (AFC). All the federations' members elect the chairman who will set up his own executive board."

He said that any change in regulations would only take effect in four years' time and could not be applied in this year's congress.

He expressed confidence that commission B would not reject the recommendation.

"There are fewer members of commission B than there are of commission A. There will be no significant rejection," he said. (ivy)