Lawyer Lim Kia Tong set to return unopposed as Football Association of Singapore president

SINGAPORE - Football Association of Singapore (FAS) president Lim Kia Tong is set to return unopposed for a second four-year term, after nominations for the FAS elections closed on Monday (March 29) with no challengers to the incumbent.

The lawyer, 68, told The Straits Times: "Competition is always welcome as it shows there are people out there who want to volunteer and contribute and immense amount of time towards Singapore football.

"We are not shouting for joy just because there is no contest, because our team is formed to be servants to Singapore football. We know we have to work extremely hard to move the Unleash the Roar initiative forward.

"Continuity is relevant and an advantage for any leadership, as we have been working well as a team, but we will also welcome progressive ideas from others for the good of Singapore football."

Announced in March, the Unleash the Roar blueprint is a national initiative that aims to uplift the standard of Singapore football and has an aspirational target of qualifying for the World Cup in 2034.

The elected team will have 15 members, which includes a slate comprising a president, deputy president, four vice-presidents and three council members.

If they pass the ensuing eligibility and integrity checks by an electoral committee chaired by lawyer Raymond Ng by April 5, Lim will be supported by deputy president Bernard Tan, vice-presidents S. Thavaneson, Teo Hock Seng, Razali Saad and Ben Teng, and council members Dr Dinesh Nair, Lionel Lewis and Goh Tat Chuan.

Of these, former Geylang International chairman Teng and former Singapore internationals Lewis and Goh are new additions to the team.

The remaining six members will be elected from eight candidates. As the only woman, Julie Teo will make the council as long as she passes the checks as the FAS constitution states that there must be at least one female council member.

This leaves Ashley Arriola, Harman Ali, Lim Tong Hai, Darwin Jalil, Rizal Rasudin, Zaki Ma'arof and Romzi Damiri to vie for the five remaining positions on an individual basis, with 40 ordinary members set to vote in person at Orchard Hotel on April 28.

Sources had previously told ST that officials from clubs in the amateur Singapore Football League, previously known as the National Football League, were weighing up a contest for the FAS leadership, but this failed to materialise.

This is only the second FAS election after Lim's team fended off the challenge of a group led by Hougang United chairman Bill Ng in 2017.

That election was a landmark for local football as affiliates were, for the first time, allowed to elect their leaders. Previous office bearers were appointed by the Government until this practice was found to contravene Fifa's regulations in 2015.