Sports these days are being run by individuals seeking individual glory, rather then for the nation. Harsh but a true assessment of things, coming from one of the finest sons of the country, Tun Musa Hitam.
"Politicians jump onto the bandwagon to get publicity rather then contribute effectively towards the sport," said Musa in his speech during the ceremony to sign the partnership between Malaysian National Cycling Federation and Yayasan Sime Darby yesterday.
When met after the event, Musa offered some clarification with regards to his statement.
"I am not saying that all politicians behave as such for there are many that have contributed towards certain sports. They must have genuine intent to serve a sport and not just because they want to be popular with the voters" said Musa.
"However more often then not you find some of them tending to wield their power when it comes to decision making process and this is not good for sports bodies.
"Whether it is good to have a politician as the Sports Minister is not for me to say as I have no influence over the matter. Suffice to say that there are pro and cons to this issue and I am not afraid to speak my mind."
Musa speaks from experience having served as President of the Malaysian Equesterian Federation. And during his time, there was less politicking in sports.
"I still remember when I was Chairman of the first World championship and we returned RM6 million to the government after staging the event," said the former Deputy Prime Minister.
"We cannot just depend on the government for funding but have to source for funds to host events."
The Sime Darby Foundation of which Musa is the Chairman, has invested in lawn Bowls, literlly taking the sport from being a past time to one where Malaysia excels in world events.
But Sime Darby opted to stay out of football, and Musa attributes it to wanting it to put its house in order before getting support from Sime Darby.
"We supported football for a year and wanted them to do better, but first they must get their house in order," said Musa, with elaborating further.
Meanwhile the desire of the nation to win gold at the 2012 London Olympics was given a boost as Yayasan Sime Darby stepped in with a RM2 million boost for the sport.
Participation in world class events in 2010 and 2011 will be used to prepare the likes of Azizulhasni Awang and Josiah Ng to win gold in London.
"Politicians jump onto the bandwagon to get publicity rather then contribute effectively towards the sport," said Musa in his speech during the ceremony to sign the partnership between Malaysian National Cycling Federation and Yayasan Sime Darby yesterday.
When met after the event, Musa offered some clarification with regards to his statement.
"I am not saying that all politicians behave as such for there are many that have contributed towards certain sports. They must have genuine intent to serve a sport and not just because they want to be popular with the voters" said Musa.
"However more often then not you find some of them tending to wield their power when it comes to decision making process and this is not good for sports bodies.
"Whether it is good to have a politician as the Sports Minister is not for me to say as I have no influence over the matter. Suffice to say that there are pro and cons to this issue and I am not afraid to speak my mind."
Musa speaks from experience having served as President of the Malaysian Equesterian Federation. And during his time, there was less politicking in sports.
"I still remember when I was Chairman of the first World championship and we returned RM6 million to the government after staging the event," said the former Deputy Prime Minister.
"We cannot just depend on the government for funding but have to source for funds to host events."
The Sime Darby Foundation of which Musa is the Chairman, has invested in lawn Bowls, literlly taking the sport from being a past time to one where Malaysia excels in world events.
But Sime Darby opted to stay out of football, and Musa attributes it to wanting it to put its house in order before getting support from Sime Darby.
"We supported football for a year and wanted them to do better, but first they must get their house in order," said Musa, with elaborating further.
Meanwhile the desire of the nation to win gold at the 2012 London Olympics was given a boost as Yayasan Sime Darby stepped in with a RM2 million boost for the sport.
Participation in world class events in 2010 and 2011 will be used to prepare the likes of Azizulhasni Awang and Josiah Ng to win gold in London.
