From Disability Percentage to the 'Putin-Medvedev' Plan: Federations' Attempts to Bypass the Retirement Law

Mohammad Derakhshan, after being forced to resign from the presidency of the Judo Federation due to the law prohibiting the employment of retirees, has been elected as the caretaker vice president of this federation. Mohammad Reza Emadi, the former vice president of the Judo Federation who has replaced Derakhshan, has appointed Derakhshan to the position he previously held. The retirement law has faced resistance from some federation presidents in recent weeks. They consider their federations to be non-governmental, although the law in question includes those who utilize government resources. According to reports in the media, some managers like Taj and Ziaei in football and volleyball have warned officials from the international federations about government interference in Iran and the violation of global sports laws. Mohammad Reza Davarzani, the Deputy Minister of Sports, in auto racing Mahmoud Seydanlou, in squash Masoud Soleimani, in skiing Abdi Eftekhari, and in sports associations Gholamali Alipour are among the retired presidents. Their numbers are numerous. In bodybuilding Nasser Pouralifard, taekwondo Seyed Mohammad Poladgar, archery Gholamreza Shabani Bahar, polo Hojjatollah Dehkadei, and fencing Fazlollah Bagherzadeh. In rowing Gholamreza Amini, karate Mohammad Sadegh Faraji, deaf sports Mostafa Karimi, the General Federation headed by Sardar Majdara, volleyball Ahmad Ziaei, football Mehdi Taj, and weightlifting also Ali Moradi. Alireza Rahimi in handball, Mahmoud Rashidi in martial arts, and Majid Shayesteh, the son-in-law of Hojjatoleslam Gharaiati who heads the tennis federation, must also resign according to this law. Some federation presidents are trying to continue their presidency by presenting educational qualifications higher than a master's degree. The Mashregh website reported that some of them obtained and equivalated their degrees during the era of the 'Physical Education Organization'. Some managers are also trying to remain at the top of federations through methods like disability percentage and sacrifice. Among them is Mehdi Taj, whose sudden increase in disability percentage became a subject of humor in sports newspapers. The Judo Federation's plan to bypass the law prohibiting the employment of retirees, reminiscent of the Putin-Medvedev model, will be implemented in other federations if it does not face opposition from the Ministry of Sports and Youth. The Putin-Medvedev model refers to Vladimir Putin and Dmitry Medvedev, who have alternated as President of Russia and have attempted to circumvent restrictive presidential term laws for an individual by 'passing' this position to each other to maintain power within their circle. Mostafa Karimi, the head of the Deaf Federation, told ISNA news agency: 'The dark point of this law is that I do not know why the representatives of the parliament are exempt. If representatives want to prove their goodwill, this law should apply to everyone, not just the government.' Taj, Saki, and Kafashian from the football federation management must resign according to this law. The Speaker of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, in a meeting with football federation officials, addressed the ambiguities raised about the retirement law. Larijani said: 'Any institution that uses government budget will be subject to the law, and since sports federations are also on the list of non-governmental public institutions, they will be subject to the law, which is internal legislation and does not mean government interference in federations.' Ali Larijani also addressed Mehdi Taj, saying: 'Whether you can exempt yourself or not will certainly not reach the time of the current law's implementation.'