Singapore Athletics in turmoil as association faces leadership crisis

SINGAPORE – They had promised change and vowed to eliminate the infighting that had dogged the previous management after their landslide victory at the Singapore Athletics (SA) elections last June.

However, it appears that SA president Ho Mun Cheong and his team have been hit by the very same problems as internal conflicts among the 14-member management committee are now threatening to tear it apart.

The sport’s leadership crisis comes just 10 months after Ho led his team to a 12-2 victory over lawyer Edmond Pereira.

TODAY understands that some members of the committee are planning to call for an extraordinary general meeting (EOGM) next month with the intention of electing new office bearers for the sport.

Sources have also told TODAY that the disagreements among the committee could also see some calling for a vote of no confidence against Ho.

While Ho’s team had promised to manage collectively and by consensus after winning the election, it appears that internal clashes over a number of issues have since divided the committee,

According to sources familiar with the matter, a management committee meeting in March descended into farce after they could not agree on Ho’s proposal to terminate general manager Jaime Cheong’s employment contract.

Last December, TODAY reported that SA could lose its grant for the general manager post after failing to consult with Sport Singapore on the hire.

Cheong had initially joined the association as its manager of sport development and performance before she was re-designated its general manager. With the SA forced to use its reserves to pay Cheong’s salary, Ho argued that Cheong had to go due to the association’s “financial constraints”.

While it is understood that Ho and Loh Chan Pew, vice-president (competitions organising) had backed the proposal, a number of the committee members were against the move. After a heated discussion among the members, the matter remained unresolved as they could not agree on a decision.

When contacted by TODAY, Ho said he would let the athletics fraternity decide if he should remain in the sport’s top job.

“We are now concentrating on the Singapore Open (Track and Field Championships) and we want to make it a good one,” said Ho.

“If we cannot perform, then we have got to step down. That is why we want the Singapore Open to be a success, and to show the affiliates that Chan Pew and myself have done a good job.”

Ho also confirmed that the association has not been receiving funding from Sport Singapore since last July.

He added: “The main thing is funding, if there’s no funding, how can we operate? We need money for SEA Games preparations, for overseas camps and our reserves are depleting.”

The crisis facing local athletics is a familiar one for the fraternity, after former chief Tang Weng Fei announced last June that he would not be standing for re-election, citing disagreements and a lack of a cohesive team – which included Ho and Loh – as reasons for his decision.

However, the new team led by Ho continues to be plagued by the same issues, and it remains to be seen if an EOGM will be able to resolve matters.

Faced with the possibility of an upheaval in the sport’s leadership, Ho, however, sounded a defiant note to his detractors.

“To me, it’s just infighting,” he said.

“Human beings are like this, whether you do well or not, there will be problems. But we’ll let it be, and let the affiliates judge for themselves.

“I just do my best, and don’t let this worry me.”