Secretary vs. Chairman - the great divide in karate is confirmed

The president and the secretary of the Kosovo Karate Federation currently have only one thing in common - the last name. But the current chairman, Avni Gashi, and the general secretary, Nazmi Gashi, have completely opposite attitudes about the latest developments in the home of Kosovar karate.

Last week, secretary Nazmi Gashi announced the resignation of ten members of the FKK Board. In such a situation, according to the Statute of the Federation, the Extraordinary Electoral Assembly is held.

The call for holding new elections in the Karate Federation has already been made by secretary Gashi. July 4 has been set as the date of the Extraordinary Electoral Assembly. The place and time of holding the Extraordinary Electoral Assembly have even been determined. The assembly, according to the announcement, is held from 17:00 and contains three items on the agenda: the election of the president, two vice-presidents and nine members of the Executive Board.

According to the notice sent to the clubs, candidates have until July 1 to send their applications. Clubs that have paid their financial obligations to the FKK for 2022, as well as new clubs admitted to the Regular Assembly held on May 9, have the right to vote.

"This date has been set in order to avoid any functional vacuum in the FKK and in order to continue the work according to the FKK Statute", he wrote in the announcement sent on Saturday.

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However, on Monday afternoon, the Karate Federation of Kosovo announced the next meeting of the Board, led by the current chairman, Avni Gashi. The announcement was also accompanied by some photographs, where some members of the FKK Board can be seen. The announcement did not inform about the decisions that were taken.

But the current chairman of the FKK, Avni Gashi, says that there was nothing extraordinary. He points out that two members of the board elected at the time when this Federation was headed by Ismet Krasniqi, now president of the Kosovo Olympic Committee, have been replaced.

Avni Gashi and Nazmi Gashi now represent two different groups of the karate family. One group claims that Avni Gashi continues to be the president of the Federation. The other group, that of Nazmi Gashi, claims that the federation is without a board, and therefore without a chairman, due to the resignation of the majority of board members.

"Several signings have taken place. They were manipulated and one of them withdrew because he saw himself manipulated. Two of them were selected by former president Ismet Krasniqi. I have replaced those two with two others, as provided by the statute and the powers of the chairman. We have the quorum to continue with the board meeting. There is no extraordinary assembly, nor new elections", said Avni Gashi for KOHEN. He does not question the continuation of his commitment as the head of the federation. He says that Secretary Nazmi Gashi exceeded his powers by calling the Extraordinary Electoral Assembly.

"The extraordinary assembly was called by the secretary, but in no case is it allowed to call and convene the assembly by the secretary. It is exceeding the powers of the secretary. There is nothing else, I will continue, as there is neither choice nor anything else. We just keep going, the board has the majority. There is no place for turbulence", said Avni Gashi. He heads the Karate Federation since March last year.

Avni Gashi says that there is a quorum to hold the Board meetings. He says that there are ten of the 15 members of the Board. Avni Gashi says that there was an attempt to make a coup against him by the group dissatisfied with his work.

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"It's just a grouping and coup attempt, since I was abroad. It is an attempted coup under pretexts. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Spain does not allow us to participate in the European, they blame Avni Gashi as the president for failing to participate in the European. These are absurd accusations. They have no basis," he says.

It shows that the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports has also been informed about the new situation created in the FKK.

"I am more sorry for the logic of destruction that they have used, because there is no legal basis, nor administrative rules have not been respected, nor the powers, plus they have gone astray and there have been influences from inside and outside. I have immediately notified MKRS and will send them a more detailed report. I have sent all the letters I received from the secretariat. I hope they will give a legal opinion on the procedures that have been undertaken", said Avni Gashi.

Secretary Nazmi Gashi calls Avni Gashi "chairman in office". Nazmi Gashi was secretary also during the time of Ismet Krasniqi.

"We think that the meeting of the Executive Board is not in harmony with the regulations and the statute of the FKK. The invitation to the assembly from the FKK secretariat was made based on the FKK Statute", Nazmi Gashi told KOKHEN.

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There has long been some pretty intense infighting within the karate community. And they are considered to inhibit the development of karate. It has been a long time since a major medal has been won. Kosovo did not participate in karate in the European Games. Meanwhile, the Kosovar karate player, Alvin Karaqi, who represented Albania, won a gold medal.

Apart from karate, there is currently a big division in swimming as well. There are often divisions in taekwondo and some other sports.