KUALA LUMPUR: Forget about going to the world court. Stop wasting time and money. It’s just pointless.
That’s the blunt message from former national team manager Datuk Kamarul Ariffin Mohd Shahar to the FA of Malaysia (FAM) on its intention to go to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in an attempt to overturn the FIFA punishment by FIFA.
Kamarul said the FIFA decision is final, and appealing to CAS would not change the verdict.
The FIFA’s Appeal Committee, on Monday rejected FAM’s appeal and upheld an earlier ruling by the FIFA Disciplinary Committee. FAM was earlier fined 350,000 Swiss francs (RM1.9 million), while seven national heritage players were suspended for 12 months and fined 2,000 Swiss francs each for document forgery in enabling them to represent Malaysia.
The seven players are Gabriel Felipe Arrocha, Facundo Tomas Garcas, Rodrigo Julian Holgado, Imanol Javier Machuca, Joao Vitor Brandao Figueiredo, Jon Irazabal Iraurgui and Hector Alejandro Hevel Serrano.
Kamarul said: “Realistically, taking the matter to CAS will not change anything. FIFA has already ruled that document forgery involving the seven heritage players did occur.
“In my view, it’s just a waste of money and time. FAM should move forward and rebuild its organisational strength instead of dwelling on this issue.”
He said FAM’s immediate priority should be about restoring its management credibility and integrity to help the national association regain the trust of supporters and international partners.
“FAM’s image has certainly been tarnished, but the top management must now strategise how to recover from this. Don’t look back — focus on fixing what’s inside.
“Right now, FAM is like a deflated ball, so let’s not keep kicking it. What we can do is give them our support, time and space to recover.”
He also urged the FAM leadership to review all procedures and documentation systems to prevent similar incidents from recurring.
© New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd
