KUALA LUMPUR: The Youth and Sports Ministry (KBS) cannot directly intervene in the Football Association of Malaysia’s (FAM) governance due to its autonomous status under international sporting rules, says its minister Dr Mohamed Taufiq Johari.
He said FAM is a national sports body registered under the Sports Development Act 1997 and is administered autonomously in accordance with the Olympic Charter and the regulations of the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA).
“Any direct government intervention in FAM’s administrative, disciplinary or technical matters must be handled with caution to avoid the risk of international suspension or sanctions that could affect Malaysia’s participation and football development,” he said in a parliamentary written reply to RSN Rayer (PH-Jelutong).
Rayer had asked the ministry to state the actions taken by the government to ensure that the controversy and related issues arising from the alleged falsification of documents involving foreign football players by the FAM do not recur, and to identify the mastermind behind the falsification.
Taufiq said the Minister’s powers under the Sports Development Act 1997 include determining policies and the direction of national sports development.
"However, implementation is subject to the principle of respecting the autonomy of sports bodies.
"Under Section 14 of the same Act, the Minister may instruct the Sports Commissioner (PJS) to carry out any necessary action or coordination, provided such instructions do not contradict the provisions of the Act.
"This authority does not extend to issuing direct instructions to any sports body, including FAM.
"Accordingly, any ministry action is carried out through the Sports Commissioner as the administrator of the Act," he added.
The Youth and Sports Ministry (KBS), through the Sports Commissioner, continuously promotes good governance practices across all sports bodies, including FAM, in line with compliance with the Sports Development Act 1997, said Taufiq.
"In this regard, the Sports Commissioner has implemented various governance strengthening initiatives at all levels, including Sports Organisation Management Courses, Governance and Integrity Advocacy Strengthening Programmes, Customer Engagement Days, Women in Sports Programmes, and public dialogue sessions with sports bodies to foster transparent, accountable and integrity-driven governance practices," he said
"As such, the ministry is not permitted to be directly involved in FAM’s governance, as any Government intervention could increase the risk of action and implications against the country.
"The ministry respects the ongoing international legal process pending the final decision of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS)," added Taufiq.
On Jan 28, FAM confirmed that all members of its executive committee (Exco) have resigned with immediate effect.
