KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysia Paralympic Council (MPC) president, Datuk Seri Megat D. Shahriman Zaharudin has called on local corporate sponsors to support national sports associations (NSAs) based on their performances and not solely on their fanbases.
Speaking to Scoop, Megat said that corporations should practice meritocracy, KPIs and think twice before funding NSAs that fail to bring any results with their funds.
“It’s time for all local corporations to stop funding NSAs that don’t produce any results to shift their focus on associations that bring pride for the nation.
“In terms of results and bringing pride for the nation, MPC has always been consistent as we always deliver medals and our athletes always qualify to participate in the Paralympics, unlike certain NSAs like the Malaysia Hockey Confederation (MHC) who have once again failed to qualify for the Olympics.
“This list of NSA that has failed to deliver includes the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) but it’s nothing as bad compared to MHC as their management has always failed to deliver its promises.
“Till today, MHC can still afford to ask for government funding every year and despite getting millions from their official partner Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) regularly.
“I think that TNB should focus more on helping out NSAs that perform like MPC rather than supporting MHC.
“We have always advocated for meritocracy to all our corporate sponsors that fund our association and we have never begged them for money and we also make sure that our reports are audited,” said Megat.
It has been reported that TNB sponsored MHC a total of RM35 million between 2006-2019 with the funds mainly focused on the development of the sport at the grassroots level.
Since 2019, TNB has reduced its sponsoring amount to MHC by primarily helping the governing body organise local and international tournaments.
Recently, TNB sponsored a total RM1 million to MHC to organise the FIH Men’s Junior Hockey World Cup in December last year.
Meanwhile, Megat, who also serves as the president of the Malaysian Paralympic Hockey Association, said that good governance will naturally lead to success.
He further asserts that this has been the formula he has employed since assuming the MPC presidency in 2019.
“The reason my para-athletes always perform in whatever tournament that they participate in is that I always make sure that I provide my athletes and coaches with whatever they need to elevate their performance.
“As a leader, I always make sure that my athletes’ welfare is taken care of, they are provided with the best facilities and also provide them with the best training programmes.”
Among Malaysia’s para-athletes, their most notable achievements include winning a total of 16 medals – six gold, four silver and six bronze – since their Paralympics debut in Heidelberg, Germany in 1972.
The world’s top-ranked para-shuttler, Cheah Liek Hou, became the first Malaysian to win badminton gold at an Olympic-level tournament after emerging triumphant at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics.
On the other hand, able-bodied athletes have not had any gold medal wins in the Olympics. – January 23, 2024