MP pans minister's silence on funding cut for athletes, proposes solutions
Bukit Mertajam MP Steven Sim has criticised Youth and Sports Minister Ahmad Faizal Azumu for not addressing steep budget cuts that saw over a hundred athletes dropped or receiving allowance reductions.
The lawmaker pointed out that to date, only the National Sports Council director-general Ahmad Shapawi Ismail dared to face the media to explain the serious issue...
Bukit Mertajam MP Steven Sim has criticised Youth and Sports Minister Ahmad Faizal Azumu for not addressing steep budget cuts that saw over a hundred athletes dropped or receiving allowance reductions.
The lawmaker pointed out that to date, only the National Sports Council director-general Ahmad Shapawi Ismail dared to face the media to explain the serious issue.
"The youth and sports minister remains silent. The issue is the youth and sports minister's failure in seeking sufficient funding resulting in the dropping of several national athletes," Sim (above) said.
If Faizal is out of ideas, the former deputy youth and sports minister suggested that he should consider drawing funds from the sugar and gaming taxes.
"The Youth and Sports Ministry should find new sources of income to fund sports development.
"For example, during Pakatan Harapan's time, the Youth and Sports Ministry succeeded in securing the cabinet's agreement to channel RM30 million from the sugar tax for sports development," Sim said.
The sugar tax refers to an excise tax imposed on sugary beverages.
Sim noted that the BN-Perikatan Nasional (PN) government also increased the lottery special draw from eight to 22.
He said some of these proceeds have already been used to fund sports development and can be increased further.
The DAP parliamentarian further proposed that the government consider corporate tax relief for sponsorships towards athletes and sports development to encourage private sector participation.
Sim added that expanding the Harapan era Track programme which provided flexible hours placement of athletes at private and government-linked companies is an option.
He said the Malaysia Athletes Career and Education should also be strengthened to ensure athletes have better career prospects after they retire from sports.
Apart from that, the Yayasan Kebajikan Atlet Kebangsaan can be fortified to protect the welfare of athletes.
Prudent spending
As for the Youth and Sports Ministry and sports associations, Sim said they must ensure prudent spending to stop the culture of "sports tourism" by limiting the number of officers accompanying athletes travelling overseas for competitions.
He added that professional sports clubs should be developed and allowed to seek private funding.
Sim cited the Harapan government seeking the Badminton Association of Malaysia to allow professional players outside of the organisation to represent the country as an example.
"The professional sports club yielded excellent performances in other countries particularly in football, badminton, basketball and other sports," he said.
In urging for immediate action, Sim described the national sports sector as being in a depressive state.
It was previously reported that 144 national athletes were dropped due to a lack of budget. The National Sports Council later clarified the actual number was 253.
The move has prompted several high-profile athletes to announce their retirement.
National hurdler Rayzam Shah Wan Sofian also revealed that his monthly allowance had been slashed from RM2,000 to RM800.
Meanwhile, Selangor PKR Youth chief Chua Weng Kiat urged the government to reinstate the athletes' full allowance or review the amount slashed.
"We understand the country's sports achievements have taken a drastic dive due to the pandemic.
"However, don't use this as an excuse to punish the athletes.
"This move will not improve the country's sports performance but instead makes matters worse," said the Rawang assemblyperson in a statement.
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