Several days ago, two-time Paralympic gold medallist Cheah Liek Hou took to social media to call the Paralympic Council of Malaysia (PCM) a “scammer” for not fulfilling its promise in paying him RM60,000 after winning the 2024 Paris Paralympics.
Following the outburst, PCM moved swiftly in addressing the accusation, which included a threat to ban Cheah from future events and bringing him to court.
Controversy brought to an end
Fortunately, the issue was finally resolved after Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh had a discussion with PCM.
In a Facebook post, Yeoh said PCM had agreed to not take any disciplinary action against Cheah and will instead “seek clarification regarding the misunderstanding over the usage of the word ‘scam'” in his social media post.
“Moving forward, all rewards will be accompanied by a written template to ensure greater clarity and transparency, which is similar to the Road To Gold template.
This is to avoid misunderstandings and to ensure a clearer, more transparent process. Our priority is to enable our athletes to concentrate on their preparations and performances.
“The ministry will always support our athletes in their mission to bring glory to Malaysia,” she wrote.
Yeoh also thanked private sponsors who had contacted her personally to top up PCM’s incentives for the five Malaysian medallists at the 2024 Paris Paralympics.
Earlier, Yeoh criticised PCM for its harsh reaction towards Cheah’s grouses, saying that it had overstepped its authority in threatening to ban and sue the athlete for simply asking what was promised to him:
