Datuk Seri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah – Photo by Roystein Emmor
KUCHING (May 25): Sarawak will continue to give financial allocations for sports and allowances to its athletes despite the poor economic situation in the country, said Youth, Sports and Entrepreneur Development Minister Datuk Seri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah.
He said this was in contrast with how the federal government has been treating the state’s athletes who are representing the country.
As a matter of fact, he added, the Sarawak Sports Corporation is looking into how to help the affected athletes.
“I am also not satisfied with this matter if the allowance of our athletes is cut by up to 70 per cent. I am however optimistic that this matter will not affect the development of our state’s sports because the state government does not support that method,” he said in his winding-up speech at the State Legislative Assembly (DUN) today.
According to him, a number of Sarawakian athletes who represented the country had met with him to express their problems and frustrations on the matter recently.
Among them was the country’s diving queen Datuk Pandelela Rinong, whose allowance was cut by up to 70 per cent.
Following the meeting, Karim believes that cutting athletes’ allowances will affect their performance as those allowances can help motivate them to improve.
“This is why we think that it is important that incentives be given to athletes from the state who represented Malaysia such as in the Olympics and the SEA Games for their expenses there.”
In responding to Padungan assemblyman and Sarawak DAP chairman Chong Chieng Jen’s suggestion that the Sarawak government should cover for its athletes’ allowances that were cut by the federal government, Abdul Karim stressed that it would be quite impossible to implement.
It would not be fair for the state government to do that because the federal government might start cutting more allowances here and there, said Abdul Karim.