KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 5 (Bernama) -- Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad
Shabery Cheek described the recent match-fixing scandal that involved 18
President''s Cup players and a coach, as disgraceful.
Ahmad Shabery who welcomed the action taken by the Football Association of
Malaysia (FAM) which announced the suspension and banishment of the players and
a coach, urged the Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission (MACC) and the police to
take severe action against those involved.
"I will direct the respective authorities to investigate and find out the
reason (root cause) and source of the match fixing scandal," he told reporters
after opening the National Open Powerlifting Championships at the Titiwangsa
Stadium here today.
Yesterday, the FAM banned 18 youth players for two to five years while a
former Negeri Sembilan coach was given a lifetime suspension, for their
involvement in match fixing.
The 18 players comprised six each from Negeri Sembilan, T-Team and Muar
Municipal Council, while three people were also charged with bribing the
players, last year.
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SPORTS-FOOTBALL (BRIBERY) 2 (LAST) KUALA LUMPUR
One of the three charged was Yusarman Yusof, the then Negeri Sembilan
Under-21 coach, while the other two were believed to be bookies, Rajendran
Kurusamy, 51, from Singapore and Sufian Ngah, 41.
Ahmad Shabery said a number of factors, including weaknesses in the
financial management of state and club teams, must be studied since it can be
related to the existence of match fixing scandals in local competitions.
A match-fixing scandal had rocked the country in 1994 and 1995, resulting in
more than 100 players and coaches being banished.
Meanwhile, the National Open Powerlifting Championships which started today
saw participation from 15 countries, including Chile, United Kingdom, Iran,
Kazakhstan, Korea and Malaysia as the host.
The championships, sanctioned by the International Paralympic Committee
serves as two of the last championships offering qualifying points for the 2012
London Paralympics scheduled in August.
--BERNAMA
MCYS RV JRL
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