LAHORE: Tariq Hussain Bugti, the president of the Pakistan Hockey Federation appointed by the prime minister recently, constituted a five-member committee on Tuesday to run the affairs of the federation, while suspending secretary Rana Mujahid and PHF Congress.

Headed by Tariq, the committee comprises Barrister Mian Ali Ashfaq (Punjab), Syeda Shehla Raza (Sindh), Rao Saleem Nazim (Olympian from Punjab), Musaddiq Hussain (Olympian from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) and Mir Humayun Kurd (Balochistan).

Talking to media, Tariq said categorically that from now only the abovementioned committee would work, adding the PHF had no secretary and the Congress.

“The committee will run day-to-day affairs of the PHF besides holding the elections from club to national level to a fresh Congress to elect new PHF office-bearers,” Tariq said.

“The committee was formed in accordance with the instructions of the prime minister’s notification under which I took the charge of the PHF.”

The present condition of the PHF was not good, both performance wise as well as financially, Tariq acknowledged.

“On one hand, our struggling team currently have a pretty low international ranking while on the other, the PHF is also under a debt of Rs80 million with staff salaries pending for the last three, four months,” he disclosed.

“Though the [suspended secretary] Mujahid did not hand over to me any document, he verbally informed me that the federation does not even have Rs100 and is under heavy debt.”

Tariq succeeded retired Brig Khalid Sajjad Khokhar, an elected president, but caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar as patron-in-chief of the PHF decided to bring Tariq in his place. This step has not been accepted by Khokhar yet, whose portrait still hangs in the office of PHF president.

“I have no personal grudge with Khokhar. He worked here at least for nine years as president and I was expecting that he will receive me at the PHF secretariat [last Saturday). But unfortunately he addressed a press conference. If he goes to court against me then we will give [its] reply in the court,” Tariq said.

Meanwhile, Tariq said the dues of the players and officials of the national teams will be cleared soon.

“Paying the [pending] dues of players of the national and junior teams is our first priority. Hopefully all will be cleared in the next month,” he said.

“I will only seek funds from the government for the PHF when national senior and junior teams produce some good results,” he stated.

Published in Dawn, December 27th, 2023