Influential personalities in Pakistan football are planning to stage a protest in front of the parliament house in the next few days to urge the new government to reinstate the departmental football teams.
It is pertinent to mention that the PTI-led regime had ordered the departments to stop funding their departmental teams and instead focus on regional teams. This had an adverse impact on the daily lives of the footballers as they were not paid by the departments.
Former Pakistan team national captain, Mohammad Essa, confirmed that the stakeholders will stage a protest in the coming days.
“We want departmental sports back. The decision of the previous government to abolish departmental sports has made a large number of players jobless and their families are suffering,” Essa stated.
Essa added that the governments decision to change the football system was a short sighted one and such a system will be successful in cricket due to the availability of massive funds in the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). He went onto add that bringing the new system of regional teams should not mean that departmental system should be abolished altogether.
He stated that the players suffered a lot due to the change in the system and they had to find odd jobs to support their homes. Essa was hopeful that the new government will decide to get the departmental system back.
Via The News