Malaysia FA suspends secretary-general, orders probe amid naturalisation scandal

KUALA LUMPUR – The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) said on Oct 17 that it had suspended its secretary-general and will form an independent committee to investigate a “technical error” that led to

Fifa sanctioning seven naturalised players

of the national team over the alleged use of doctored documents.

During a heated press conference, FAM and its legal team denied it had committed forgery, but declined to address repeated questions from reporters on how the players were naturalised, pending its appeal against the ban.

The scandal has

sparked uproar in Malaysia,

with fans and some lawmakers calling for heads to roll at FAM as well as government agencies responsible for granting citizenship to the players.

FAM deputy president S. Sivasundaram said the organisation’s secretary-general Noor Azman Rahman had been suspended effective immediately to allow for an independent probe. 

The Fifa disciplinary committee last week said Malaysian authorities

may have relied on forged documents

to naturalise the mixed-heritage players Gabriel Felipe Arrocha, Facundo Garces, Rodrigo Holgado, Imanol Machuca, Joao Figueiredo, Jon Irazabal and Hector Hevel. 

It also accused FAM of failing to conduct due diligence, after Fifa was able to obtain birth certificates that had significant discrepancies with those submitted by FAM to show the players’ Malaysian lineage.

Serge Vittoz, a lawyer representing FAM, said the organisation had filed an appeal against Fifa’s suspension, with a decision from the world football governing body’s appeals committee expected to be handed down on Oct 30.

“The objective of the appeal is to have all sanctions annulled and to demonstrate that there was no forgery on the side of the players,” he said.

“There was no forgery on the side of the FAM as an institution, and if any wrongdoing was done, it should be targeted to the person in question,” he added, without providing any details.

Sivasundaram reiterated that a “technical error” had been made in the submission of documents, saying the process had been rushed to meet a deadline for registering the players. 

He declined to respond to additional questions on who was responsible for the error or how it was made, pending the outcome of the investigation.

Malaysian government authorities have

previously said the players met all conditions

needed to obtain citizenship, though Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail has admitted relying on his ministerial discretion to relax some of the requirements. REUTERS