"The Normalization Committee has been assigned to hold the congress stages."
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Youths and Sports Minister Andi Mallarangeng strictly refused if any party wishes to hold rival congress of the All-Indonesia Football Association (PSSI) apart from that was instructed by FIFA.

"The Normalization Committee has been assigned to hold the congress stages. So that all parties should accept the decision made by the committee. It is clear that we will not support a rival congress," the minister said here on Friday.

One of the reasons to refuse the PSSI rival congress is that the congress should run in accordance with existing regulations of both the FIFA statute,and the statute or rule of PSSI.

The minister claimed that he has received report directly from the Normalization Committee chairman, Agum Gumelar after meeting with FIFA president, Sepp Blatter in Zurich on Tuesday (April 19).

FIFA has decided to appoint the Normalization Committee as the Election Committee and accepted the Appeal Committee which was formed on Thursday (April 14).

In addition, FIFA still rejected four candidates to go forward in the PSSI congress which will be held in May 20, 2011.

"We regret the FIFA`s decision to reject four names of the would be candidates for PSSI chairman to go forward. But what can we do, because it was already decided," the minister said.

Four names that have been banned to go forward for the candidates of the PSSI chairman are Nurdin Halid, Nirwan D Bakrie, Arifin Panigoro and George Toisutta.

The PSSI crisis evolves around the present chairman Nurdin Halid`s candidacy for another term in office ahead of a PSSI congress.

A committee responsible for verification of the eligibility of candidates for the PSSI chair recently named Nurdin and one of his long-time associates as the only candidates fit to stand in the election.

This triggered wide-spread protests across the country and a commission handling appeals on the verification committee`s decision eventually revoked Nurdin`s nomination.

As a result of the problem, the PSSI executive board decided to postpone the timeline of the association`s congress while FIFA had ruled that the congress must take place before April 30.

FIFA has banned the present chairman of PSSI, Nurdin Halid, from running in the election of a new chairman at its congress.
(Uu.B003/F001)

Editor: Priyambodo RH
Copyright © ANTARA 2011