PETALING JAYA: The Football Association of Malaysia's (FAM) extraordinary congress on Thursday (June 4) will vote on 94 proposed amendments to their statutes, including sweeping changes to elections, executive leadership and candidate vetting, as Malaysia look to end their status as one of only two Asian Football Confederation (AFC) member associations yet to implement the mandatory governance reforms.
AFC secretary-general Datuk Seri Windsor Paul said nearly every AFC member association had already adopted similar reforms and that it was time for Malaysia to do the same.
"I am ashamed to say this – these statute changes have been implemented by almost every nation, and only two have not done this. One of them is Malaysia," he said.
"But we also understand that FAM are a legacy organisation. Over the years, they have enjoyed success, but sometimes it takes a jolt to realise change is needed, and for that, we must credit them."
The proposed changes, drafted with AFC and FIFA input, aim to align FAM with governance standards adopted by leading football associations in Asia.
Among the key proposals is a leaner executive committee, which would be reduced from 17 or 18 members to 11 comprising a president, three vice-presidents, three state FA representatives, two club representatives, one women’s football representative and one expert group representative.
The reforms also seek to broaden participation by giving voting rights and agenda-setting privileges to stakeholders beyond state FAs, including Super League clubs, the Coaches’ Association and other football groups.
Election rules would also be eased to encourage greater participation.
Presidential candidates would require four nominations instead of six, while vice-presidential hopefuls would need three and executive committee candidates only two.
"We want this entire process to be inclusive, not an exclusive club. You must be able to put your name forward to run for any position," said Windsor.
Candidates would also face stricter eligibility and integrity checks, including screening by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission, police, Insolvency Department and international sports integrity firm Sportradar.
The proposed statutes also introduce a mandatory 60-day election timeline, with candidate lists to be circulated to members at least 14 days before Congress.
The outcome of the Extraordinary Congress will determine whether Malaysia finally adopt the long-delayed reforms and remove themselves from the AFC's shrinking list of holdouts.
