Soccer body to question suspected drug users

Soccer body to question suspected drug users

JAKARTA (JP): The disciplinary commission of the Indonesian
Soccer Association (PSSI) will invite three players who are
allegedly consuming shabu-shabu (crystal methamphethamine) for
verification next Saturday in Malang, East Java.

Commission chairman Andi Darussalam Tabusalla said on Sunday
that his commission was seeking confirmation from Kurniawan Dwi
Yulianto and Kuncoro, both from PSM Makassar club, and Mursyid
Effendi from Persebaya Surabaya on their activities at Wetan
hotel in Surabaya on April 11.

"We decided to delay the verification from Monday to May 13
due to a technical problem. There is no special reason," he said.

The verification is needed because the players gave different
accounts of their activities at the hotel prior to the match
between PSM against Petrokimia Gresik.

Darussalam said that he was sure that his commission would
find the player who took illegal drugs.

"To find the person is not easy; yet it's not so difficult. We
have Yuniarto Budi as our key witness. We will find the other
witness after we list the activities of the players
chronologically," he said.

He was referring to Yuniarto, another PSM player, who shared
the same room with Kurniawan on April 11. Both players allegedly
consumed shabu-shabu that day.

Kuncoro said in a written statement earlier that he was
persuaded by Mursyid to take shabu-shabu but Mursyid, who was
also questioned last week, said it was Kurniawan who encouraged
him to take the drug. Kurniawan has refuted Mursyid's statement.

Kuncoro reportedly admitted during a questioning by the
commission here last Wednesday that he also took the illegal
drugs, but he refused to implicate Kurniawan and Mursyid.

PSSI questioned Kurniawan and Yuniarto in Makassar last
Thursday.

Kurniawan reportedly denied that he asked Mursyid to come to
the hotel, and he said he had no idea what Mursyid, Kuncoro and
another unidentified person were doing in his room while he was
in the restroom. After he finished taking a bath, the three
players had left.

Yuniarto said he did not know what the three players were
doing in the room because he left when they had just arrived at
the hotel. He said they had gone when he returned. (ivy)