MHF moves into top gear

THE Malaysian Hockey Federation (MHF) Executive Committee met in Kuala
Lumpur yesterday and the outcome was refreshing, as a string of meetings
have been slated to chart the future of hockey.
Unlike the past when meetings were a rarity, and the standing committee
made up of a select few who ran the show, the new-look MHF looks
promising.
But there was one glaring omission. The MHF council did not see it
necessary to have a media committee to handle public relations. Even the
parent body, the FIH, has a media committee.
Fresh faces, except for Datuk Jalil Abdul Majid, were also chosen to
revive the various MHF sub-committees which have been dormant for the past
three years.
The Executive Council will meet four times next year - Feb 15, May 3,
Aug 1 and Nov 15 - and one month before the Executive Council meets, the
various sub-committees will hold their meetings to brief the council of
progress made.
"The MHF constitution allows us to form committees when necessary and
today (yesterday) saw the birth of the Management Committee to replace the
Standing Committee. The Management Committee, made up of the president,
deputy president, five vice-presidents, secretary and treasurer, will meet
in between the council meetings to discuss urgent matters," said MHF
deputy president Tan Sri P. Alagendra.
Another fresh addition to the MHF was a Marketing Committee and the
chairman appointed was Raja Datuk Seri Aman Raja Ahmad. A marketing arm is
badly needed by the MHF, which had been relying on ad hoc committees to
fill up their coffers all these years.
Datuk R. Yogeswaran, who moved into the shadows after his last
appointment as manager for the Kuala Lumpur World Cup team, was appointed
the Coaching Committee chairman. His assistant Dr Balbir Singh was re-
appointed for another term. Yogeswaran was also named as one of the three
Independent Delegates.
The other Independent Delegates are Datuk Anuar Mohamed Nor (re-
appointed to serve another term) and Datuk Sulaiman Mohamed Noor.
Jalil, who was previously the chairman of the Competitions Committee,
was selected to head the all-important Schools Committee.
"The Schools Committee members will be made up of the 15 State
representatives from the Malaysian Schools Sports Council. We have also
decided to have the Director General of Education as the division advisor
for the committee," said Alagendra.
The Schools Committee, previously headed by Datuk Seri Manap Ibrahim,
failed to live up to expectations and the MHF and schools drifted apart as
a result.
The Competitions Committee will now be headed by Datuk Bashir Ahmad who
will be assisted by S. Satgunam.
The appointment of N. Sreedharan as chairman of the MHF Umpires Board
(MHFUB) came as a revelation. The umpires can now expect brighter days
ahead. MHFUB also saw a change in the secretary's post which will now be
occupied by Brian Gerard Fernandez.
When the MHFUB was run by the previous chairman V. Kulasingam and
secretary Teo Choon Seng, the umpires almost went on strike because little
was done to take them to the next level.
They claimed that courses and assignments to upgrade them to
international umpires were non-existant. Sreedharan will have much damage
control to do over the next few months. THE MHF SUB-COMMITTEE MEMBERS
Umpires Board - Chairman: N. Sreedharan; Secretary: Brian Gerard
Fernandez.
Coaching Committee - Chairman: Datuk R. Yogeswaran; Secretary: Dr Balbir
Singh.
Competitions Committee - Chairman: Datuk Bashir Ahmad; Secretary: S.
Satgunam.
Technical and Development Committee - Chairman: Dr S.S. Cheema;
Secretary: V. Muraleedharan.
Schools Committee - Chairman: Datuk Jalil Abdul Majid; Secretary: Ahmad
Shukri.
Selection Committee - Chairman: Sultan Azlan Shah; Secretary: S.
Satgunam.
Marketing Committee - Chairman: Raja Datuk Seri Aman Raja Ahmad.
Legal and Special Projects - Chairman: Roy Rajasingam.
Independent Delegates - Datuk Anuar Mohamed Nor, Datuk R. Yogeswaran,
Datuk Sulaiman Mohamed Noor.
Assistant Secretary: T. Paramalingam.
Assistant Treasurer: Wan Mohamed Nasim.
(END)