KATHMANDU, Oct 17: All Nepal Football Association (ANFA) President Ganesh Thapa on Thursday said he along with three other officials of the football governing body may not follow the directives of the Public Account Committee (PAC) of legislature-parliament and the Ministry of the Youth and Sports (MoYS) not to work under their respective capacities for two months.
Thapa´s reaction comes a day after Minister for Youth and Sports Purusottam Paudel and National Sports Council (NSC) Member Secretary Yubaraj Lama suggested to Thapa and three other officials to take a leave of two months.
PAC on September 29 had directed MoYS to suspend ANFA President Thapa, Vice President Lalit Krishna Shrestha, General Secretary Dhirendra Pradhan and Treasurer Birat Jung Shahi charging them with involvement in financial irregularities worth Rs 581.7 million.
PAC had directed the Ministry of Youth and Sports (MoYS), Department of Money Laundering Investigation and the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) to carry out separate investigations and take necessary action against the accused within two months.
“We may not follow the directives given by PAC. However, we have been holding meetings since Wednesday. We are also meeting on Friday to discuss the issues,†said ANFA President Thapa, who denied any corruption at the football governing body.
According to ANFA CEO Indraman Tuladhar, Minister Paudel had suggested to Thapa and others to take a leave until the investigation is over during a joint meeting with ANFA office bearers and Member Secretary Lama.
Thapa said that he was disappointed with MoYS and NSC´s reaction on the issue. “As the patron of Nepali sports we had expected these bodies to protect us from unfair decisions of PAC,†Thapa said, adding he was still working in the capacity of president as they have not received any letter from the government.
“Though Paudel and Lama said there were no irregularities at ANFA, they could do nothing against parliament,†said Thapa, adding that he was not given a chance to furnish clarification.
Thapa also suggested to the constitutional bodies to start the investigation without delay and to reach a conclusion within a week. “We are ready to face punishment if we are proven guilty but the complainants should also face punishment if they are proven wrong,†Thapa said.
Meanwhile, Vice president Shrestha, General Secretary Pradhan and Treasurer Shahi also denied any corruption at ANFA.
Source : My Republica
