MALAYSIA is not in the best position to play host to the 2026 Commonwealth Games due to the limited timeframe given by the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF).

According to former chairman of Sukom Ninety Eight Berhad (Sukom 98) General (Rtd) Tun Mohamed Hashim Mohd Ali, two years was too short of a time to make intensive preparations, thus casting doubts on whether Malaysia could pull off a repeat of its achievements in 1998 when the country played host for the first time.

“When we hosted (the Games) back in 1998 we had four years to make preparations including upgrading venues, getting sponsorships and preparing the necessary infrastructure,” Hashim was reported as saying by Utusan Malaysia.

“This time, we are only given two years, and I think two years is too little time for us to do it right so that it is on par with the 1998 edition.

“If we had four years (to prepare for the Games) we could find a sponsor as we have done before when we had set up a company called Sukom 98 to make sure the Games run smoothly.”

According to Hashim, despite CGF offering £100 mil (RM602 mil) in assistance, the government must be prepared to fork out an even bigger budget on top of what was promised by CGF.

Taking into account the country’s economy, he said this points to the fact that this is not the right time for Malaysia to host the 2026 Commonwealth Games as this could invite criticism from certain quarters.

“We could channel that amount of money to the people by building hospitals or schools. Hosting the Games would open the doors to a barrage of criticism from people who are going to say that this is not the right move as the government is using such a huge sum of money for other purposes other than for the people,” Hashim reckoned.

“There must be a reason why the Games’ original host had pulled out in the first place, so I think we shouldn’t be in a haste to host the Games in 2026 due to the limited timeframe given for us to make the necessary preparations.”

Doubts had emerged over the prospect of Malaysia hosting the 2026 Commonwealth Games after current and former senior officials expressed grave reservations about the country stepping in.

The CGF is reportedly scrambling to find a host after the Australian state of Victoria had abruptly pulled out in July last year citing spiralling costs.

India had also reportedly said it had no interest in hosting the 2026 edition of the Games and the province of Alberta in Canada also withdrew itself from the bidding process for the 2030 Commonwealth Games, a week after Victoria announced its withdrawal.

Yesterday (March 21) Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh said the government will decide on the offer to host the 2026 Commonwealth Games in a Cabinet meeting today. - March 22, 2024 

https://focusmalaysia.my/not-the-right-time-for-msia-to-host-2026-commonwealth-games-says-sukom-98-chief/