Be transparent in spending budget for esports industry, govt told

 

The government has proposed an allocation of RM20 million for esports next year, with RM5 million to build a drone sports excellence centre.

PETALING JAYA: Players in the esports industry want the government to be transparent in its spending of the RM20 million budget allocation for the sector next year.

Under Budget 2022 unveiled in Parliament last Friday, a sum of RM20 million was proposed for the esports industry, including RM5 million to build a drone sports excellence centre.

In addition, finance minister Tengku Zafrul Aziz proposed income tax exemption on prize money won in qualified esports tournaments.

Malaysia Esports Federation (MESF) communications director Muhammad Farouq Abdul Patah said there should be transparency on the part of the government on how the allocation will be spent.

“That is our concern. Sometimes, it is not always about the amount, but how it will be utilised. If funds are spent in the wrong places, you would not see any development in esports. It will go to waste,” he told FMT.

“We (MESF) have also wondered how the funds given by the government for the esports industry since 2019 have been spent. There should also be some transparency in the matter.”

The esports industry had been allocated RM15 million for this year, an increase of RM5 million from the 2020 budget. The allocation given in 2019, which was the first for the industry, was RM20 million.

Despite his reservation on the lack of transparency in utilising funds from the previous budgets, Muhammad Farouq said he was pleased the industry would be receiving a huge allocation for 2022, something he did not anticipate since there were other sports sectors that also needed attention from the government.

He also said that MESF, as well as esports athletes who represented Malaysia in The International 10 (TI10) tournament, were happy with the proposed income tax exemption for prize money from qualified esports tournaments.

The Malaysian Dota professional players team led by Cheng Jin Xiang, 20, who goes by his game name of “NothingToSay, recently won US$5,202,400 (RM21.6 million) by finishing second in the TI10 tournament.

Careers in esports

Muda co-founder Tarmizi Anuwar hoped the government’s recognition of the esports industry with the sizeable budget allocation will encourage youths to consider pursuing careers in the industry.

“In my opinion, the income tax exemption is good, especially in encouraging youths to pursue careers in esports,” he told FMT.

“The government’s support for esports will help increase awareness of the sector playing an important role in the job market.”

Tarmizi, who is also the manager of a Dota 2 professional gamer team called “Gagak Dota 2”, said the government should not only spend money on tournaments, but also help to build talent from the grassroots and develop the skills of existing players.

“In addition, we want amateur-level athletes and trainers to be exposed to courses and training.

“If there are grants channelled to esports associations, the amount needs to be disclosed to these associations and their athletes, so that they would know how to apply for them,” he said. - FMT