LAHORE: The Pakistan Olympic Association (POA) is holding its emergent general council meeting at a local hotel here on Sunday, with the gathering to have one-point agenda: the situation of Olympic Movement in Pakistan.

“The meeting will deliberate important issues like situation of Olympic Movement in Pakistan and agreement reached between IOC/ OCA/ NOC Pakistan/ Government of Pakistan on June 19, 2014 at Lausanne,” a press release issued by the POA stated.

According to some reports, the POA is still not happy with the steps taken by the Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) in observing the sanity of the Olympic Movement.

The POA is concerned over the steps taken by the government in implementing the decision it agreed with the IOC on June 19 at Lausanne under which it will protect the Olympic Movement.

The government has to change one of the clauses of its national sports policy, under which it has been pressurising the national sports federations for the last ten years not to elect their president, secretary and treasurer for more than two terms.

But the IOC and the POA have been fighting against this clause.

There are reports that the IOC is holding its next meeting in October this year and still the clouds of Pakistan suspension are hovering.

The PSB, some reports indicate, decided on Friday to start work on a new sports policy and Sunday’s POA emergent general council meeting will remind the government to speed up its working before the IOC meeting in October to avoid the suspension.

Pakistan was at the brink of losing its IOC membership in July this year. But on the assurance given by the government that it will respect the Olympic Movement, the same clause is still existing.

Published in Dawn, September 14th , 2014