37-PAGE REPORT: Independent inquiry highlights major issues under former MAU deputy presiden.
By Devinder Singh
LIES, callousness, misleading statements, misuse of funds and appalling behaviour are just some of the words used to describe Karim Ibrahim by an independent inquiry report chronicling its findings into the conduct of the former Malaysian Athletic Union (MAU) deputy president.
In a copy of the report obtained by Timesport, the committee chaired by former Court of Appeal judge Tan Sri V. C. George expressed its "deep concern" of Karim's involvement in a series of controversies.
"Were it not for the courage of the whistle-blowers, each of these three matters might very well not have been brought to light," concluded the 37-page report which pinned the blame on Karim for three major issues which has blighted Malaysian athletics since 2009.
The three matters highlighted are relay runner Yunus Lasaleh's positive drugs test at the 2011 Sea Games, the failure of six national sprinters to attend dope tests on Karim's alleged orders in May 2011 and the misuse of funds for a training-and-competition stint involving five national athletes and two coaches to Mannheim, Germany in 2009.
The report catalogued a series of misleading statements and outright lies sprouted by Karim despite evidence and witness testimony to the contrary.
Here we outline the committee's findings over the three major complaints included in two petitions by 42 athletes and 15 coaches, who expressed their "dissatisfaction with the actions and leadership of Karim."
• Miri, Brunei and Yunus Lasaleh from Sept 25, 2011
Yunus alleged that, on the orders of Karim, a Bulgarian doctor Gueorgui Ananiev accompanied by a Bulgarian coach Vasko Tsvetanov, had administered unknown pills and injections which led to his positive test for the anabolic steroid, metandienone.
Karim produced a letter from Ananiev saying that the doctor had paid his own travel and accommodation and did not provide banned drugs to athletes during the training stints in Miri and Brunei in September and October last year.
The report states: "Karim feigns complete ignorance of the involvement of Bulgarian doctor in Miri and Brunei. Karim and the doctor lied about the doctor's travel and stay in Miri.
"We are satisfied that it must have been Karim who was responsible for the Bulgarians' involvement in the Miri and Brunei exercise.
"It is our finding that there can be no doubt Karim was very much involved in arranging and paying for the Bulgarian coach and the Bulgarian doctor's involvement in Miri.
"He was primarily responsible and involved.
"We have no doubt that Karim was aware or was made aware of the fact that the doctor was administering various substances to the athletes in Miri and Brunei. However there was no clear or direct evidence that banned substances were administered to Yunus or that Karim was party to that."
"The probabilities are that it was some substance prescribed by the Bulgarian doctor and administered to Yunus that caused him to be tested positive for banned substances.
"It was at the insistence of Karim that the Bulgarian doctor and coach were involved in the stint in Miri and Brunei and it was Karim who arranged for the necessary funds to pay for their travel and hotel costs. There is no direct evidence that Karim may have known what the doctor was up to."
• Failure of six athletes to attend doping tests
Six sprinters -- Norjannah Hafiszah Jamaluddin, Nurul Sarah Kadir, Siti Zubaidah Adabi, Yee Yi Ling, Siti Fatima Mohamad and Nor Imran Hadi -- absconded on May 24 last year from an unannounced out-of-competition dope test at the National Sports Institute.
They allegedly did so on the orders of Karim and then-national coach Harun Rasheed with Fatima producing a taped recording of Karim instructing the six to flee to Bulgaria the following day, three days earlier than their scheduled departure for a planned training stint.
The athletes also claimed that Karim told them not to implicate him in an internal MAU inquiry into the matter.
"We are satisfied, on the evidence, that both Harun and Karim had advised the athletes not to go for the doping test, rearranged the departure for Bulgaria to May 25 instead of May 28," said the report.
"We are also satisfied that the athletes had been told by Karim not to implicate him in respect of the failure to take the doping test.
"The committee is appalled at the conduct of Karim in advising the athletes to evade the doping test. It is outrageous that after assuring the athletes that he would be answerable to all that happened in Malaysia, that he would see to it that action would not be taken against the athletes, that he feigned to be totally unaware that the athletes had been required to undergo the doping test on May 24, 2011.
• The Mannheim stint
Athletes Tan Song Hwa, Noraseela Khalid, Zaiful Zainal Abidin, Rayzam Shah Wan Sofian and Jironi Riduan and coaches Vladimir Hristov and Frantisek Petrovic claimed they did not receive their full daily allowance for the 125 day-stint.
In her testimony, Song Hwa claimed they were even initially denied the use of a toilet with Karim, who accompanied them on the trip, allegedly saying "just pee at the side of the street."
Despite Karim's claim his trip was self-funded, the inquiry found "documents confirmed that a sum of RM68,800 was handed over to Karim by way of a cheque (from the National Sports Council).
"It became clear... he had not made any attempt to ensure the athletes and coaches received their daily allowances. All he did was pass the money on to (one Mr) Khalid (who runs the Mannheim MTG Club for athletics).
"The committee finds that there has been a mismanagement of funds. We find that Karim has gone to great lengths to distance himself from the Mannheim stint.
"Karim's lack of concern for the athletes' pocket money is also telling. The committee finds his statement that the athletes are employed anyway, a callous disregard of the interest of persons under his care."
The committee commended the bravery of the petitioners in "exposing" Karim's deeds, saying: "Our findings show a vote of no confidence against Karim is amply justified."
"They have done a great service in respect of national athletes by exposing the shortcomings in the administration of athletics in the country and in exposing Karim Ibrahim."
