KUALA LUMPUR – The Malaysian sports community has been abuzz following Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s Budget 2025 announcement last Friday.
The big question, particularly among the National Sports Associations (NSAs), is who will receive a bigger piece of the pie from the RM230 million allocated for sports development.
Notably, the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) has been allocated RM15 million, e-sports development received RM20 million, and RM1 million was earmarked for cricket.
However, this distribution has sparked discontent in some circles.
Many are questioning why sports such as badminton, or even bowling – which have consistently produced world champions and Olympic medallists – were not given the same preferential treatment.
Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh has urged patience, stating that the allocation breakdown will go to Parliament for further discussion. Additionally, a working committee meeting between the NSAs and the National Sports Council (NSC) is scheduled for early next month.
Despite the minister’s assurances, there remains unease among NSAs, many of which are not convinced they will receive adequate funding to run their programmes in the coming year.
The Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) has yet to release any official statement on the budget, but secretary-general Datuk Kenny Goh and head of administration Michelle Chai have been vocal on social media.
“Thank you, sir, for your praise and support. It would be even greater if there were a special allocation for badminton,” read a suggestive post by Kenny on X.
Michelle Chai echoed this sentiment, posting: “Congratulations to all the sports that received specific funding. Hopefully, Anwar Ibrahim and Hannah Yeoh won’t overlook the sport that has produced a world champion (Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik), consistently delivered at the Olympics, and undoubtedly brought Malaysians of all colours together.
“If we maintain the status quo, we will, if not already, lose ground to other nations that are investing heavily in badminton.”
With an annual operating cost of RM50 million, BAM has a valid argument for seeking a larger budget. By comparison, the Sports Authority of India (SAI) invested a whopping Rs72 crore (around RM35 million) for seven shuttlers in preparation for the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Similarly, bowling in Malaysia requires around RM5 million to stay afloat. In a recent interview, Malaysian Tenpin Bowling Congress secretary-general Maradona noted: “The budget allocation this year is bigger than last year. Hopefully, MTBC will be able to send our bowlers to more than five or six international tournaments.”
As each sport puts forward its case for a larger share of the budget, it will be interesting to see how things unfold in the coming weeks, especially when it is debated at the Dewan Rakyat. – October 22, 2024