Sunday, December 5, 2010
New Sports Model, two-term leadership
With the Malaysian Amateur Athletics Union (MAAU) in shambles, proactive measures must be taken. I don't quite agree with Sports Minister's suggestions to drop the athletes from any elite programme because by right, you cannot blame them for poor governance on the association's part! That is why the idea of a new sports development model, a bit like the New Economic Model la, as proposed by former National Sports Council (NSC) director-general, Datuk Wira Mazlan Ahmad, sounds appealing. Read the New Sunday Times here
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8 comments:
New model, old model. What difference does it make. The final solution is to kick out the sports minister and make the Loose Cannon the administrator of sport. Am I joking?
Sports today is all about winning. The amount of money splach on sports to win a medal says it all. Therefore where does the OLympic Charter on Sportsmanship, non discrimination and fair play and all that is good in the participation of sports today. You saw Singapore Table Tennis players, unless you are blind they are all imports from China. Today we talk about sports excellence to go to the Games.
You can talk about age limit of 70 and all others, but when you talk about sports in Malaysia, you need to look at the Birds eye view. We have the Sports Ministry and the Sports Commissioner and the Sports Development Act on one part, Then you have the National Sports Association and NSC on the other and finally you have this NGO the Olympic Council of Malaysia.
Take an honest good look whether all these 3 bodies are in sync?
Since Datuk Wira Mazlan did not touch much about OCM maybe let me touch on OCM.
OCM is an NGO govern by the Olympic Charter, in sport if you have read the preamble of the Charter, it is stated clearly that he does not and will not be subjected to Govermental pressure. What does that means ask yourself, it means they can tell the Minister to go fly a kite as far as the Sports Development Act is concerned.
Recently the Penang State Government wanted to sponsor the Drangon Boat team to represent Malaysia at the Asiad but OCM said no and they gave many reasons, to me that does not hold water or make sense.
Look at this pathetic body with the 73 year old Secretary General who weild absolute power in OCM. So far none in OCM can move him or dare to cross his path. Loose Cannon when was it that you hear him telling you that he is going to retire? 5 years ago?
What is he doing there, Dato Wira Maslan mentioned that some are there to cling to power through unsporting means, he is one such person.
Come 2011 is election year and let me tell you my prediction:-
a. Just before the election there will be goodies in the form of Ang Pau to all the NSA members;
b. The voting will be by show of hands and not secret ballots, and the President will just allow that;
c. He will be elected in.
Look at the composition of the Board of OCM today and ask yourself what can they contribute to OCM? Most are retired people waiting for that free holiday. Is this criticism true or unfair and false? Ask yourself Loose Cannon whether there is any truth in this.
My conclusion, the revamp must take place in all 3 arms involving not only the NSC or taking pot shots at MAAU.
Fully agree with Sukan Malaysia that sports personalities who have 'nothing more to contribute' should just move on and let those young blood full of ideas and passion to take over. Those who had never been involved in sports or interests in sports should just stay away and never dare to try to run any sport's body as the damage done is actually beyond repair to the athletes and the country. For the country to stay relevant in world sports the country needs sincere and seasoned sports personalities to come forward and run those sports associations!
bro rizal,
i agree with sukan malaysia that changes must be made in sport associations, OCM and NSC.
if NSC DG has to justify his contract extension to minister every 2 years, it would be fair if sports associations and their leaders be imposed time limit and they must prove their worth before they can contest for election. the same applies for all OCM principal office bearers.
otherwise Malaysian sports will be stuck as it is now.
act before its too late for the sports at any level...be it at schools, clubs, states, national or ministries (MOE & KBS).
Who would make the 1st move...?
As for OCM, after many years enjoying their pecks, would you think they would relinquish their positions b'cos you tell them so...(and so does most of the NSAs office bearers). The sports can go to the crocks but they will still be enjoying themselves on expeanse of the athletes and sports.
Bro Rizal
I commend Datuk Wira for his article printed in the New Straits times of December 5th 2010. In it, he expressed his thoughts on a subject matter which is in my mind and, I dare say, in the minds of many others.
Sports Associations are no longer what they used to be, this is because the spirits of voluntarism is no more or greatly diminishes. The people are not the same as those selfless individuals of the past who served only because they were passionate of the sport, and were much more knowledgeable and effective. Elections were gentlemanly and friendly affairs, but they have now become political processes to bring in one group and keep out others. Many good people are not in these bodies.
However, Sports Associations have grown over so many years, yet they do not have an effective regulatory body. The whole Code of Ethics of Bursa Malaysia needs to be applied to our Sports Associations and they need to be measured for their performance.
That is why his suggestion of limited terms for officials is a good one and many countries have such systems although I think 8 years is too long. 2 terms totaling 4 years is enough. People have to retire and new ones replace them. This can easily be achieved by th Sports Development Act requiring all Sports Associations to have a standard provision in their Constitutions stipulating limited terms for office bearers. This would be the first step but it still does not ensure that Sports Associations will perform to uplift the standards of our Sportsmen.
I do not share his faith that performance can be monitored and dictated to by the Sports advisory Panel (SAP) or the Ministry of Sports. They have not done so in the past. If only they would regulate the Sports Associations like the way Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) regulates the banks. Not only does BNM monitor the performance of bank directors, but they also conduct frequent audits of banks. Appointments have to be approved by BNM. Unfortunately, in our country no other institution functions as well as BNM.
In the end, I question whether it is the right thing to rely on the Sports Associations to uplift the standards of our Sportsmen. Raising the standard of our sportsmen requires a National Policy covering grass root development in schools and clubs and elsewhere, selection and grooming of promising young people, plenty of good coaching and facilities, support from parents, corporations and government, provisions of competition at all levels. This goes far beyond what the Sports Association can do. Sports Associations can help but they should not be relied on as they are only voluntary organizations, their effectiveness depending very much on individuals. There are some Sports Associations which are better than others, but this can change with the leadership. I wish we had the vision to have developed Bukit Jalil into a huge sports village for people to stay and train. Getting around in KL is a nightmare and time wasting.
South Korea is now the best example of a nation that produces top golfers. Their Golf Association is only a small part of their success story. It starts with the interest of many young people in golf who are, with parental support, prepared to train with the hundreds of good coaches available to them. Funding is available and even amateur events are televised. Recently, their ladies team won both the World Amateur as well as the Asian Games and individual events by a mile. Their players came from a group of 2000 youngsters who started 7 years ago. This is the kind of competition we face. Even the Americans and Europeans are overawed. But the Chinese are copying. There are other countries which also have many youngsters playing, but none can compare with the Koreans in focus and in goals.
I think if you examine the successful countries, you will not find Sports Associations responsible for their success but more in support roles. It has to be driven by people and organizations paid to do the job. But you will also find that their Sports Associations (like the British ones) are very well run by people with excellent qualifications. Manu have former internationals and famous athletes. How many of ours have? Just compare India with China (both with a billion people) and you will know which country we should follow. At the end of the day, government has to leas. Many have been abroad and studied the methods of successful countries. We should be able to improve every aspect of sports development in the government and the private sector. There are people who know what is required. Will they allowed to for it?
South Korea is now the best example of a nation that produces top golfers. Their Golf Association is only a small part of their success story. It starts with the interest of many young people in golf who are, with parental support, prepared to train with the hundreds of good coaches available to them. Funding is available and even amateur events are televised. Recently, their ladies team won both the World Amateur as well as the Asian Games and individual events by a mile. Their players came from a group of 2000 youngsters who started 7 years ago. This is the kind of competition we face. Even the Americans and Europeans are overawed. But the Chinese are copying. There are other countries which also have many youngsters playing, but none can compare with the Koreans in focus and in goals.
I think if you examine the successful countries, you will not find Sports Associations responsible for their success but more in support roles. It has to be driven by people and organizations paid to do the job. But you will also find that their Sports Associations (like the British ones) are very well run by people with excellent qualifications. Manu have former internationals and famous athletes. How many of ours have? Just compare India with China (both with a billion people) and you will know which country we should follow. At the end of the day, government has to leas. Many have been abroad and studied the methods of successful countries. We should be able to improve every aspect of sports development in the government and the private sector. There are people who know what is required. Will they allowed to for it?
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