WHEN THERE IS A WILL, THERE IS A WAY
A journey of miles start with a small step and the sincere first step attracts truthful companions which makes the passage a lot easier. That was the exact case when foundation of SJAS laid. A small group of Sports Journalists started approaching fellow journalists to convince them for a united platform. In which both senior and junior reporters took on board.
In this regard first meeting was convened on September 26th, 2008, at Arts Council of Pakistan in Karachi. Late Rashid Ali Siddiqui, Shahid Ali Khan, Shoaib Jutt, Imran Ahmed Mani, Tariq Aslam, Syed Wazir Ali Qadri, Abdul Ghaffar and Ubaid Awan attended the meeting. In the gathering the idea of forming a platform was discussed and consented.
On September 30th, 2008, A programme arranged at KDA officers club where 50 sports journalists of the city turned up. Accepting the recommendation from late Allauddin Ghouri, the association was named Sports’ Journalists Association Sindh (SJAS). The 11-member convening committee was formed, under Sardar Khan. The mandate of the committee was to hold elections after members’ registration.
THE HONOURABLE FOUNDATION
Sardar Khan
First President of SJAS
Late Rashid Ali Siddiqui
First Elected President of SJAS
Ubaid Awan
First Elected Secretary of SJAS
Karachi Sports Journalists gathered at KDA officers club in 2008 where Sports Journalists Association Sindh (SJAS) was formed.
First Ever Meeting Of Karachi Sports Journalists At Arts Council Of Pakistan, Karachi In 2008
OUR STORY
In Feb 2009 during Pakistan and Sri Lanka first Test an emergency meeting was convened at National Stadium Karachi in which the first elections of SJAS were announced.
Sardar Khan and late Rashid Ali Siddiqui were unanimously chosen as president and secretary respectively.
The first elections of SJAS were held on February 12th, 2012 at the Karachi Press Club. Late Rashid Ali Siddqui and Ubaid Awan were elected as President and Secretary respectively for four years.
In the coming four years [2012-2016], SJAS saw a number of ups and downs. The first milestone was in 2011 when we won the presidential election of Pakistan Sports Writers Federation (PSWF). Late Rashid Ali Siddiqui was elected as the president and that was the first occasion when a journalist from Sindh took office of the PSWF president.
In 2012, SJAS hosted the third general body meeting of the PSWF where elections were to be held however a few glaring irregularities prompted SJAS to boycott the process.
The second elections of SJAS were held in 2015. Rashid Ali Siddiqui did not contest due to his deteriorating health. Three panels participated in the elections. The Founder panel got only two seats while the remaining slots were acquired by united panel. The election process gave impetus to the activities.
The newly elected body of the SJAS expanded the organisation and carried out healthy activities. The MoU signed between SJAS and Essa Lab is one of the highly commendable moves. Acquiring the key posts like senior vice president and associate secretary in PSWF and lobbying successfully for senior journalist Anisuddin Khan for the AIPS Asia award, are the indeed the highly praiseworthy steps
Late Rashid Ali Siddiqui contribute significantly to the progress of SJAS. His timely and continuous assistance helped SJAS to overcome a lot of adversaries.
By the grace of Almighty Allah, SJAS has come a long way in the past eight years. The dream of a unified platform has become a reality today.
To date, SJAS is regarded as an independent entity without an influence of any federation or association. Whoever tried to create rift amongst the members failed miserably in their designs as well.
In the end SJAS urge its members to keep the unity intact and don’t let personal interests supersede the collective cause.
Bear in mind, there is only one platform which caters to the journalists of Karachi and Sindh and that is Sports Journalists Association of Sindh.
Long Live SJAS