PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtu­nkhwa Hockey Association (KPHA) secretary Syed Zahir Shah has asked the Pakistan Hockey Fede­ration (PHF) secretary Mohammad Shahbaz Senior to step down immediately from his post and has lashed out at the former captain for holding the players solely responsible for the recent failures at the World Hockey League (WHL) while absolving himself of all responsibilities.

“Having confessed to his failure in the World Hockey League semi-final round despite having spend about Rs 42 million on the team, the PHF secretary has no moral ground to stay in the hockey association as secretary,” said Zahir, who is also a member of the PHF Congress, during a news conference here on Saturday.

Stating that PHF president retired Brig Khalid Sajjad Kokhar had been out of PHF affairs for almost six months due to his illness, the KPHA secretary said it was Shahbaz Senior as PHF secretary who oversaw th federation affairs and ought to accept the blame for team’s poor show in London.

“PHF secretary Shahbaz Senior withdrew millions of rupees from the PHF account in the name of hockey promotion without taking anyone on board,” alleged Zahir, while showing bank statements of the PHF.

Zahir, who has also worked as PHF’s competition committee chairman, said the hockey federation had failed to even call a meeting of the PHF Congress since Dec 26, 2015,

“The PHF Congress includes representatives from all districts across the country apart from departmental representation.

“The PHF takes suggestions from the PHF Congress before any big event which was earlier a precedent. But now things have gone from bad to worse with neither any meeting being convened nor anyone taken on board ahead of important events,” the KPHA secretary alleged.

“It was a clear violation of the PHF constitution as they spent almost Rs400 million without getting approval from the PHF Congress,” he further said.

Stating that things could not go unnoticed for long, Zahir said that violation of PHF constitution and spending of millions of rupees with no results would soon be challenged in the Senate and National Assembly.

“We have great names in hockey who served the motherland and the national game for years,” said Zahir. “Shahbaz should step down immediately and give others the opportunity to work towards betterment of the game.”

Rejecting Shahbaz’s views which he expressed a day earlier, stating that Pakistan team lacked good players, Zahir said the country was full of talent.

“How hockey could be promoted at the national level if the PHF has failed to hold the national junior and national senior hockey championships which are mandatory events of the PHF calendar,” Zahir lamented.

Zahir also appealed to the PHF Patron-in-Chief, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, to take necessary steps for the revival of hockey.

Published in Dawn, July 2nd, 2017