OCM Wants NSAs To Be Prudent In Spending

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 28 (Bernama) -- The Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) urged all National Sports Associations (NSAs) to be prudent when spending funds provided by the National Sports Council (NSC) to weather the global economic crisis.

OCM honorary secretary Datuk Sieh Kok Chi said NSAs, especially associations of less popular sports, must be careful and prudent in managing their funds so that financial constraints would not derail their preparations for the Laos SEA Games in December.

"NSAs that solely depend on funds from NSC should avoid unnecessary spending," Kok Chi told Bernama when contacted here today.

Kok Chi added that as a step to reduce expenditure, NSAs must reduce athletes' participation in international competitions and only select events that can really benefit athletes.

He added that if the NSAs are not careful in their spending, it will be the athletes who will suffer in the end.

"In the current economic situation, lesser known sports will also find it difficult to attract sponsors or contributions from the corporate sector," he said.

This year, the NSC was allocated RM170 million compared with RM230 million in 2008 and in line with the reduction, NSC Director General Datuk Zolkples Embong had also urged NSAs to be thrifty in their spending, he said.

Zolkples had also requested all NSAs to cater their programmes according to their allocated funds so that preparation of athletes would not be jeopardized.

However, despite the economic crisis, NSC would not reduce funding that was promised for three sports identified as gold medal prospects at the 2012 London Olympics, namely badminton, cycling and archery.

-- BERNAMA