New group rises

By ISAAC LIRI

FOOTBALL Federation Papua New Guinea chairman John Kapi Natto has gone on the front foot to sell his new association to the soccer fraternity holding an information sharing meeting in Port Moresby yesterday.
Kapi Natto, who has long been a vocal critic of the PNG Football Association, was unable to mount a challenge for the presidency of the country’s soccer governing body last December at its congress in Kimbe, West New Britain, and declared he had lost faith in the current administration headed by David Chung and would start a rival association to cater for grassroots soccer and better treatment of the associations.
The awareness campaign was staged at the Taurama Aquatic Centre.
The gathering was to bring together interested administrators to share ideas and make committments to the new association.
“I was in Lae recently to carry out a similar awareness like this and people were very vocal and supportive about it and have pledged to get behind us,” KapiNatto said.
KapiNatto said the push to form a new association was caused by PNGFA’s suspension of 12 associations and its unfair and unethical treatment of dissenting voices among the PNGFA affiliates.
“I wanted to pull out after they suspended my association but then the 12 presidents of the other suspended associations asked me to stand for and support the democracratic process and to start a new association.
“Corrupt conduct has been a feature of football in Papua New Guinea at the top and all the 12 presidents have given me their support and I am willing to take shots for the good of football in our country,” KapiNatto said.
He said the main aim was to bring the code to the grassroot level recalling that when he was with PNGFA he had seen the continuous neglect and marginalisation of associations around the country.
He said that the new association was not concerned whether FIFA would take action or not as the world body through its regional office and other outlets had failed to repond appropriately to letters of complaints that had been sent.
“I even went there personally to the headquarters in Zurich but it seems that my complaints and concerns were not taken seriously.”
Kapi Natto will be leaving for Madang this weekend to carry out a similar awareness and then go on to Kokopo and other New Guinea Island centres (Associations).
He said the logo and launching of FFPNG would be done next week when all 12 presidents would endorse the association along with a confederation league.
He said a constitution had been drafted and would be presented during the official launching.