Football woes continue as President elect cuts a sorry figure
The President of Negombo Football League, Ranjith Rodrigo, has fired a virtual ‘show cause’ notice to J. Sri Ranga, the President elect of Football Federation of Sri Lanka (FFSL), for being inactive on the present crisis the game is facing. Ranga, President of Mannar FL, was elected on January 14, but within days FIFA suspended FFSL ‘until further notice’ preventing Sri Lanka from taking part in any international competitions.
Ranjith Rodrigo
With the unexpected twist, FFSL under Ranga, has been left in the dark with him being an inexperienced administrator in football. But Rodrigo, a former President, as well as a Vice President of the previous administration, believes that there are possible ways of finding a way out, if Ranga was fully committed to the task.
“It has been almost a month since his election as President of FFSL, but he remains inactive and silent. He only has slightly over three months to fulfil the task he undertook, to correspond with FIFA and make necessary amendments to the existing constitution of FFSL and align with their requirements. But nothing seems to be happening so far,” stated Rodrigo, who has fired 30 queries and recommendations to overcome the challenges faced in his letter to Ranga.
Rodrigo has questioned Ranga whether he had officially taken charge of FFSL as its elected President and whether he had conducted an official Council Meeting, which is customarily performed after an election. According to insiders, Ranga has called in two emergency Executive Committee meetings, but has not officially appointed a Council to ratify the decisions taken by the ExCo.
“Whether he (Ranga) is committed to get FIFA ban lifted is a mystery to everyone. Football League are left in complete dark over what steps, the new committee has taken to get the plan lifted. There are experts who are willing to contribute at this point, but he has not even taken the trouble to seek their expertise and the time is running out,” Rodrigo pointed.
After his election Ranga told reporters in Colombo that he will officially take charge of his duties ‘only after the accounts and audit reports are cleared as good by the Auditor General’. However he assumed duties few days after the election. Rodrigo has sent the letter to Ranga on January 29, after learning of the development through third party sources two weeks after the election.
In his letter Rodrigo asked of the plans to meet the demands of FIFA that will enable FFSL to regain its membership, as well as other matters related to funds and grants remaining in FFSL coffers. In addition he has asked if FFSL, under Ranga, wishes to continue with the pending legal battles, as well as about the future of football and FFSL’s core domestic competitions, the wellbeing of its employees, players, coaches, officials and trainers.
“Football Leagues are unaware of their future, and what will they become by May 31, the deadline of Ranga’s tenure. He should have a proper road map and strategies but as of now, there’s none.”
Rodrigo continues to blame the former FFSL administration under Jaswar Umar, under whom he served as Vice President, for failing to address the core issues despite the tenure being extended several times, and putting Sri Lanka football in jeopardy.
“Sri Lanka football is going through the darkest era in its history. The entire fraternity was under the impression that Ranga will put things back on track with the limited time available. It seems as if he too is failing football miserably,” charged Rodrigo, who backed Ranga at last month’s election against Umar.
Meanwhile, it is reported that the new FFSL ExCo has initiated an inquiry to the accounts related to the former administration under Umar, during 2021 and 2022. The Minister of Sports, Roshan Ranasinghe, too has appointed special committee to investigate on the same matter. According to findings Umar’s administration has spent over Rs.1000 million during his tenure, which he vehemently denied, stating that the amount reported was mainly caused by the inflation.
“Please also note that this (the letter) is not a charge sheet of any sort, and you and your administration, as the duly elected guardians of football in Sri Lanka, are the respected caretakers of football and all stakeholders, including those who voted in favour and against your administration,” Rodrigo’s letter stated at the end.
Meanwhile Indika Thenuwara, who was elected as Secretary General of FFSL alongside Ranga, has tendered his resignation according to reliable sources. Though he has reasoned out personal commitments as his excuse to resign from the position, it is learnt that the work style of Ranga has played a major role for Thenuwara to come to his decision.
In addition the new FFSL has not come out with a comprehensive plan to counter the temporary ban imposed by FIFA, who will hold its General Assembly in Kigali, Rwanda, most likely with Sri Lanka as an absentee.