KARACHI, June 24: The Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) secretary Monday came under heavy fire when a senior federation official accused him of mismanaging the FIFA funds.

Ali Nawaz Baloch, a vice-president of the PFF, lashed out at the federation’s secretary, Agha Liaquat Ali, for failing to utilise the one-million-dollar FIFA aid for the youth soccer development.

“He (Liaquat) has been the PFF secretary for the last three years but so far not a single youth programme exists for which FIFA gave the PFF money,” Nawaz, a former Pakistan captain, said.

FIFA, the world governing body of the sport sanctioned $one million package to the PFF in 1999 of which $750,000 has been released, while the federation is expecting the remaining $250,000 later this year.

Apart from the above mentioned grant, Pakistan has also been selected last year for the FIFA’s $400,000 Goal Project.

The official, though, did not charge Liaquat with corruption, categorically stated the secretary had been guilty of wasting the money by not using it for which it was granted.

Nawaz, who had also represented the then Emirates Club of the United Arab Emirates in mid-70s, said neither was there Under-14 and Under-16 squads nor any plan had been chalked out for the promotion of the game at grassroots level.

According to Nawaz, Liaquat should have distributed the FIFA money to the four provinces for the uplift of the ailing sport but the amount is still in the PFF’s kitty untouched.

Nawaz supported the sports ministry for its decision to audit the PFF accounts including the FIFA grant, saying “the money in the PFF coffers belongs to public and the government has the right to probe.”

“I must say that even FIFA should also check whether the grant is being used for the purpose it has been given,” he said.

The official appealed to the concerned authorities to hold fresh polls of the PFF, giving the new leadership an opportunity to pull the sport out of crisis.

“Elections (of the PFF) and a change in the PFF hierarchy is the only way to stem the rot,” Nawaz said.