Malaysia defends naturalisation process for banned players as scandal widens

KUALA LUMPUR (Agencies): Malaysia on Thursday defended a decision to naturalise seven members of its national football team in a rapidly widening scandal after FIFA suspended the players over the alleged use of doctored documentation. The FIFA disciplinary committee said this week it had found evidence indicating that Malaysian authorities may have relied on forged documents to naturalise the mixed-heritage players Gabriel Palmero, Facundo Garces, Rodrigo Holgado, Imanol Machuca, Joao Figueiredo, Jon Irazabal and Hector Hevel. The committee said FIFA was able to obtain original birth certificates that showed significant discrepancies to those submitted by the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) to show the players’ Malaysian lineage. The fact FIFA was able to obtain the original documents suggested FAM and the players “did not exercise the necessary level of scrutiny or care”, the disciplinary committee said. FAM has said it will appeal the committee’s decision.

FIFA’s findings have sparked an uproar, with fans and lawmakers calling for action against FAM as well as the national registration department and home ministry, which are the two agencies responsible for granting the players’ citizenship. The scandal puts Malaysia’s Asian Cup ambitions in jeopardy, following wins over Nepal and Vietnam in qualifying rounds. The team is scheduled to play Laos on Thursday. Malaysian Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail told parliament on Thursday birth certificates are not required for naturalisation under Malaysia’s constitution and that the players had met all conditions required to obtain citizenship. He acknowledged he had relied on his ministerial discretion to relax some conditions – in particular a requirement for an applicant to have resided in Malaysia for a set period of time. Saifuddin did not address allegations that officials had failed to verify the authenticity of the documents submitted, saying eligibility issues were matters between FIFA and FAM. FIFA said presenting fraudulent documentation for eligibility purposes “constitutes, pure and simple, a form of cheating, which cannot in any way be condoned”. “Such conduct erodes trust in the fairness of competitions and jeopardizes the very essence of football as an activity founded on honesty and transparency,” FIFA said.