CONCERNED: Assistant Sports Minister Datuk Lee Kim Shin (second right) talks to (from second left) Morren and Ahmady while permanent secretary to the Social Development Ministry Soedirman Aini (right) and Sarawak Taekwondo Association president Mohd Salleh Sani (second row) look on.
KUCHING: Answering the callup to represent the country in the upcoming SEA Games in Indonesia has proven very costly for a young Sarawakian taekwondo exponent.
Morren Urai Lian from Tatau, Bintulu, was forced to leave her job last month in order to represent Malaysia in the Games in Palembang, Sumatra, next month. And for now, her future looks uncertain.
The 23-year-old is one of two exponents picked to represent the country in the taekwondo pair poomsae category.
The other is Ahmady Radi, 18, from Miri.
Unlike Morren, Ahmady has been given leave by his company to attend training and the Games.
Morren, on the other hand, was made to choose between her duty to the country and the unsavoury prospect of losing of her job if she stuck to the former.
Because of her strong desire to represent Malaysia and her love for taekwondo, she decided to accept the callup by the Malaysian National Sports Council (MNSC), and in so doing, was forced to resign her post in a shipping company in Bintulu.
Had she turned down the callup, she would not be able to go for training and the Games. And she could not apply for annual leave because she had none left.
“So my employer told me if I chose to take up the sport and compete in the Games, I had no other choice but to quit my job,” Morren said yesterday.
Commenting on the high costs some athletes had to pay in the interests of the state or nation, Assistant Sports Minister Datuk Lee Kim Shin said it was “very unsporting” on the part of any corporate bodies or companies to disallow their staff to represent the state or nation in national and international sports competitions.
“This does not bode well for our efforts to promote sports as one of the corporate social responsibilities (CSR) of companies. In fact, private sector involvement and support in the development of sports in the state is still very low.
“We are actually appealing to the private sector to make sports one of their CSR initiatives, and support development in the state in whatever way they can,” he added.
In Morren’s case, Lee said the least her company could do was to grant her unpaid leave for the duration of the Games.
Lee, who is also Assistant Minister of Communication, was speaking to reporters after receiving a courtesy call yesterday from the Sarawak Taekwondo Association (PTNS-WTF), led by its president Mohd Salleh Sani.
Also present were permanent secretary to the Social Development Ministry Soedirman Aini, Sarawak State Sports Council (MSNS) director Francis Nyurang Ding, PTNS-WTF deputy president Datuk Lau Kueng Chai and the state technical chairman Tan Check Joon.
During the courtesy call, Lau presented a personal contribution of RM10,000 to the two exponents. Lee received the check on their behalf.