KUALA LUMPUR: On Feb 15, 2012, Osman Bakar reported for duty as the FA of Malaysia’s (FAM) Coordination and Integrity Unit head. The retired ACP, who was an active footballer during his younger days, was brought in during an era when match-fixing had reared its ugly head in the domestic leagues.
Yet all Osman could do was compile newspaper cuttings of match-fixing reports involving teams playing in Malaysia. He was frustrated, sitting all alone in his office, powerless.
And it then became apparent that Osman was hired merely to tick the box, an illusion that something was being done to maintain the integrity at Wisma FAM.
Osman isn’t the only former cop who has served the national body. Tan Sri Zaman Khan Rahim Khan, a prolific police officer who was once the Criminal Investigation Department director, was FAM’s disciplinary committee chairman in the 90s.
Rahim Abdullah represented Malaysia in the 1972 Munich Olympics before becoming national coach in 1991, while former KL chief police officer Datuk Dell Akhbar Khan Hyder Khan served as FAM general-secretary from 2000 to 2005.
Fast forward to yesterday, former deputy Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay was appointed FAM’s integrity committee chairman for the remainder of the 2025-2029 term, while Malaysian Border Control and Protection Agency (AKPS) director-general Datuk Seri Shuhaily Zain was named the committee’s deputy chairman.
Ironically, in announcing these new appointments, FAM’s newly minted president Datuk Ab Ghani Hasan said the national body’s general secretary Datuk Noor Azman Rahman would remain in the post until at least the end of his current contract in 2027.
Noor Azman was occupying the position when the doctored documentation fiasco took place and had even attended the Asean-Fifa Memorandum of Understanding signing ceremony held on the sidelines of the Asean Summit 2025 in Kuala Lumpur last year despite serving a suspension.
Ayob and Shuhaily’s appointments come at an interesting time, when FAM is still struggling to explain what led to the scandal last year. Fifa imposed sanctions on the national body and the footballers, as the episode hit headlines worldwide.
Among the questions that remain unanswered:
i. Who forged the documents?
ii. What was the deal in getting the players to don the Malaysian colours?
iii. Who was/were the agent(s) involved?
iv. Has the certifying Notary Public been hauled up?
v. A police report was lodged in December. What is the status of the investigation?
Reforms can only begin if past practices are addressed and corrected. The appointments of popular characters like Ayob and Shuhaily must be beyond the pomp and fare of their celebrity-like status. They must be allowed to have a bigger say and turn their words into reality.
FAM is suffering from a massive trust deficit, and it has other external problems to worry about – the shorter attention span of supporters and the very many distractions that could see the local football fanbase dip, among others.
The best way to address trust is by injecting integrity, accountability and transparency.
Come clean and explain what transpired. They must then quickly introduce safeguards and regulations to ensure such an episode does not happen again. Trust has to be earned beyond mere pledges, promises and saying “sorry”.
This could very well be Ayob and Shuhaily’s biggest test as they fly the integrity flag while tackling bad practices in Malaysian football.
