Institute staff object to Kassman

By ZACHERY PER
OPPOSITION is growing against the bid to have Api Kassman appointed acting chief executive officer of the Papua New Guinea Sports Foundation.
Staff from the National Sports Institute in Goroka, Eastern Highland, said over the weekend the move was a slap in the face of sports administrators.
Kassman, the first secretary to Minister for Sports and 2015 Pacific Games Justin Tkatchencko, was nominated by foundation chairman Graham Osborne to replace outgoing CEO Iammo Launa, whose term expired on Jan 30.
A staff member who claimed to be speaking on behalf of concerned foundation staff at the National Sports Institute described Kassman’s nomination as an ‘insulting joke’.
The staff member who did want to be named said it was a ‘slap in the face’ for sports professionals and career officers who had devoted their lives to sports development in the country.
He said there were highly qualified people with diplomas, degrees and masters in sports-science, sports administration, physical education and more who could take up the post.
“Why should they waste their active lives in developing sports in Papua New Guinea when Osborne simply cannot recognise them and allow someone who came on board yesterday to be given the position of CEO,” he asked.
He said under Osborne, the foundation had lost its focus and direction and that was alarming with the country to host the next Pacific Games.
 “I call on Osborne to immediately revoke his appointment of Kassman and I extend the call to Tkatchencko and the National Executive Council (NEC) not to accept the nomination because this is a bad trend,” the long-time NSI staffer said.