KUALA LUMPUR, June 29 — The Malaysian Paralympic Council (MPC) Annual General Meeting (AGM) was postponed today in the wake of controversy over nominations in the contest for the body’s top post.
Its deputy president John Ng said the AGM for the 2019-2023 term was postponed to a date to be determined later upon the unanimous consent of all 24 affiliates.
“At today’s meeting, all affiliates have agreed to postpone this AGM while getting a new date to be submitted to the Sports Commissioner.
“We will have a fresh AGM depending on the application to the Sports Commissioner. After that we follow the constitution and start the process again,” said Ng after chairing the AGM, which was held in a cordial atmosphere for two hours at the Paralympic Games Excellence Centre in Kg Pandan here.
According to the constitution, within 30 days of the date of postponement, MPC should call all its affiliates to discuss a new date before submitting it to the Sports Commissioner.
“The exco meeting will be held within 30 days to decide on the new date of the AGM,” he said.
However, Ng declined to say if the postponement was because of the dispute over certain nominations.
He also declined to elaborate when asked on the status of nominations for the election of the governing body’s executive committee.
Incumbent MPC president SM Nasarudin SM Nasimuddin was not present at the meeting, which started at 10 am.
Both candidates for the MPC president’s post, former youth and sports minister Khairy Jamaluddin and Malaysian Canoe Association (MASCA) president Datuk Seri Megat D. Shahriman Zaharuddin, were also absent.
It is understood that Megat D. Shahriman attended the Kuala Lumpur Hockey Association (KLHA) election and was elected the president.
The contest for the MPC president’s post has sparked controversy after Khairy, in his capacity as the Wheel Chair Rugby Association deputy president, was alleged to have filed his nomination paper after the deadline.
This prompted Megat Shahriman to lodge a complaint with the Sports Commissioner asking it to review Khariy’s eligibility to contest.
The Sports Commissioner’s Office also issued a statement yesterday saying that Khairy’s nomination was deemed invalid as he had submitted his nomination after the closing date. — Bernama
