MFL CEO Stuart Ramalingam, who admitted that he was worried about the situation involving ‘The Bos Gaurus’ squad, said he wanted to see the acquisition process by the new owners run smoothly, including trying to clear the team’s outstanding debts. — Picture by Zuraneeza Zulkifli
PETALING JAYA, April 21 — The Malaysian Football League (MFL) hopes that the new owners of Perak FC will prioritise the welfare of players and officials after taking over the team.
MFL chief executive officer (CEO) Stuart Ramalingam, who admitted that he was worried about the situation involving “The Bos Gaurus” squad, said he wanted to see the acquisition process by the new owners run smoothly, including trying to clear the team’s outstanding debts.
“I have been in touch with the new party (prospective owners) to make sure they know and are clear on what MFL needs.
“They have until 11.59 tonight (last night) to resolve this matter and I hope it can be resolved as soon as possible,” he said.
He said this when met by reporters at a ceremony for the announcement of the sponsorship of ALIF brand cooking oil as a sponsor of the M-League, which was also attended by Sime Darby Oils (SDO) managing director Mohd Haris Mohd Arshad, yesterday.
Prior to this, Perak FC, who are playing in the 2022 Premier League and are embroiled in a change in ownership, became the first club to be handed a three-point deduction after failing to pay the remaining salary arrears of players and top team officials and statutory contributions for the 2021 season.
Misfortune continued to befall Perak FC when they were docked six more points in the Premier League competition, based on the decision made by independent body, First Instance Body (FIB), with immediate effect on April 15.
FIB stated that the punishment was imposed due to the team’s failure to settle the remaining salary arrears, involving players and officials of the main team as well as statutory contributions for them as of November last year, based on the Statutory Declaration (SD) sent by the team dated December 15, 2021.
If within seven days from the date the second penalty was imposed and proof of full payment or mutual settlement agreement is still not submitted to MFL on or before today (April 21), the matter will be brought to the FIB Committee and MFL board members for further action. — Bernama