ANNUAR MUSA ALSO A BILLIONAIRE? UMNO MAN USES OWN MONEY TO PAY RM420K IN SALARIES TO KELANTAN FOOTBALL PLAYERS

KUALA LUMPUR— The Kelantan Football Association (Kafa) president Tan Sri Annuar Musa has been forced to pay the state team’s salaries with RM420,000 out of his own pocket after its sponsorship was put on hold.

Annuar said the Kelantan football team faces a deficit in its initial budget of RM16 million that was fixed at the beginning of the Malaysia Cup’s season — which will end tonight — as the sponsor had not provided sufficient funds.

“For last month’s salaries, I settled it by issuing my own cheque of RM420,000 before the match against Perak as many (players) were pleading so the total (salary payment) is only (sufficient) for 20 people, there are 15 more who did not get salaries and now it’s a new month and I don’t deny this matter,” he was quoted saying by local daily Sinar Harian.

“But I can’t afford to pay it all off because we need RM1 million each month. I am open and transparent in the issue of Kafa’s administration. That is my capability and now I have to think of other ways, I am not Mentri Besar, not minister, if I as an ordinary people’s representative want to collect donation of one million per month, it will certainly be difficult,” he added.

Annuar reportedly said that Kafa has agreed to allow the Kelantan football team’s key sponsor’s firm to defer its sponsorship contract for next year until its business conditions improve.

“Dr Vida (Datuk Seri Dr Hasmiza Othman) has recommended that she be allowed to defer sponsorship, not cancel it. She has a bit of business problems that she is handling and I understand the situation.

“After negotiations, we agreed (to defer), all the obligations in the contract still apply except for the 2017 season it is not carried out. If the situation in 2018 improves for her, we may continue or if not read it, we can continue the sponsorship the following year,” he said.

In a high-profile deal this January that saw the Kelantan football team rebranded as Pamoga Qu Puteh The Red Warriors, Hasmiza’s firm signed on to sponsor the team for two years with RM16 million.

Hasmiza was recently charged with 32 counts of failing to pay RM4.2 million in the Goods and Services Tax (GST).

MALAY MAIL