00:00Malaysia Athletics will set up a special task force to investigate the decades-old issue of unpaid prize money to national athletic legends, following a recent exposé by FMT.
00:11The governing body said the task force, to be formed with the Youth and Sports Ministry and the National Sports Council, will verify the list of affected athletes, trace financial records, and determine the current value of the unpaid RM5,000 awards.
00:25In a statement, MA Deputy President Wan-Hisham Wan Saleh said, the initiative is part of efforts to address what it described as a deeply regrettable and unresolved chapter in Malaysian athletics.
00:37An FMT report yesterday detailed how at least 10 top Malaysian athletes never received their RM5,000 cash prize after winning the Sportsman and Sportswoman of the Year awards from 1966 to 1982.
00:50Wan-Hisham said, MA will personally reach out to each athlete, assign liaison officers to maintain communication, and formally advocate with the government for the release of funds to honor the commitments.
01:03He also said, MA will formally write to Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeo and MSN Director General Jeffrey Nadirin by the end of this week to present the facts and advocate for the moral necessity of resolving this decades-old issue.
01:14Wan-Hisham also pledged a systematic review of MA's policies to ensure future promises to athletes are documented and fulfilled without delay.
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