KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 21 — The Youth and Sports Ministry (KBS) has confirmed that national badminton ace Cheah Liek Hou has not been suspended following the recent dispute over reward claims for para-athletes.
Minister Hannah Yeoh stated today that the Paralympic Council of Malaysia (MPM) will seek clarification from the athlete over a misunderstanding about the use of the term “scam”.
“On the matter of para-athletes’ reward claims involving Liek Hou, MPM, and I have agreed that he will not face any suspension.
“MPM will also seek clarification from him on the misunderstanding over the term ‘scam’. From now on, all reward claims will come with a written template, similar to the Road To Gold format, to make the process clearer and more transparent,” she said in a Facebook post.
She said it is time everyone moved on so athletes can focus on their training.
Yeoh also expressed appreciation to private sector contributors who came forward to top up MPM’s rewards for Malaysia’s five Paris Paralympic medallists.
Media reports said the athlete had accused MPM on social media of being a “scammer” for not paying the RM60,000 cash incentive promised to him if he won gold at the Paris Paralympics last year.
The national para-badminton star’s complaint drew Yeoh’s attention, as she disagreed with MPM’s move to demand a show-cause letter from him, saying that Liek Hou had not breached the code of conduct and had only demanded what was promised to him a year after winning gold in Paris.
