COMMENT: The power struggle in Singapore football
Finally, the small man’s voice will be heard in Singapore’s historic football election
If there is one man who should be biting his nails over which way the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) election results will go, it is the football body’s secretary general, Winston Lee. He has had a charmed career in Singapore football, working his way meticulously up the ranks. Starting out as the S-League’s marketing executive nearly 20 years ago, he has sinced moved up the FAS hierarchical ladder systematically, one big step at a time. He became CEO of the S-League, then secretary-general of the Singapore football governing body and finally vice-president of the Asian Football Confederation. The president of AFC has showered praises on Lee, describing him as a “strategist and a highly-regarded administrator who commands great respect in the global football community.”
Lee made his way up by avoiding the public glare and making sure he was never embroiled in the storms that rocked Singapore football with a regularity that made our most popular sport a punching bag for fans. He astutely avoided controversy, stayed in the background most times; when he did speak up, they turned out to be the right noises, like when he denounced the cancer of corruption in the game.
But what has Lee got to show for his almost decade-long stint as the FAS secretary general since his appointment in 2008 besides a solitary triumph in the AFF Suzuki Cup, a regional tournament that is hardly of world-class standard? Singapore has not even come close to qualifying for the Asian Cup let alone the World Cup, and former regional minnows like Laos and Cambodia are catching up fast.
Lee’s tenure may come to an end on April 29 when the election to decide the office bearers of the FAS Council is held, following an ultimatum from world football governing body FIFA. Lee’s job is not up for election, but the team that wins will decide whether he stays on as secretary general or not. If the team led by lawyer and president of the interim FAS council Lim Kia Tong, gets in, Lee’s future is guaranteed. If the team headed by outspoken businessman Bill Ng creates an upset, then it might see the end of the long career of a man who charmed his way up the power ladder.
What is even more significant is that this election will give the small men of the beautiful game a chance to have their say on what kind of change they want to see in Singapore football, especially with the national team hitting an all-time low of 171 in the FIFA rankings in October 2016. It has improved slightly since and is currently ranked 163rd.
For the first time, they get a chance to choose FAS office bearers, as the latter group were previously appointed by the government. The National Football League clubs, the forgotten and neglected small men of Singapore football, have a majority with 24 votes. S-League clubs, including those sitting out of the current competition due to financial issues, have nine votes and others like community groups and Women’s Premier League teams have 13 votes. Those standing for election will woo them with promises and even more promises.
The other key factor to how this election result will unravel will depend on which team the government backs. The Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth showed its hand a little when it said suddenly in January that FAS will not have direct access to the Tote Board’s funding, believed to be about $25 million annually. Instead, it will now be administered and doled out by SportSG, a government agency. This could be a signal to the clubs that if they elect the team not acceptable to the powers that be, getting their hands on the funding will become problematic.
Expect more such behind-the scenes manoeuvrings as the election heats up.
P N Balji is a veteran Singaporean journalist who was formerly chief editor of Today, as well as an editor at The New Paper, and currently a media consultant. The views expressed are his own.
