FOOTBALL: AFC HOUSE MOVE: Onus on Tengku Abdullah

TENGKU ABDULLAH

THE Asian Football Confederation's (AFC) executive committee which met in Shanghai yesterday, has given Tengku Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah the mandate to discuss with the Malaysian government and present AFC's stand on the move of AFC House from Kuala Lumpur.

It is reliably learnt that AFC president Mohammed Hammam is still keen to keep AFC House in the Malaysian capital.

"The mandate has been given to me by the AFC exco to go back and discuss with the government and sports ministry AFC's requests for the AFC House. I will be back tomorrow (today) and I will seek an appointment with the AFC president and its secretary to discuss the areas that AFC is requesting for development," said Tengku Abdullah by phone from Shanghai after yesterday's meeting.

"I have been given until Jan 15, 2009 to have discussions with government officials, and then I have to make the presentation to the president," added Tengku Abdullah who is an AFC vice president.

Among AFC demands are a 30,000 square metre plot of land, at no cost, an interest free bank loan for it to develop the headquarters, and diplomatic status and tax exemptions for its key officials.
"I think certain criteria are flexible and we can accommodate them, but let's wait and see what is the best solution," added Tengku Abdullah.

"I will present the case to government but as I have said before AFC House should remain in Malaysia as the country has contributed so much to the development of football in Asia. Also, many people have sacrificed so much to keep AFC House in Malaysia." Meanwhile, Mohammad said that all that AFC was seeking was a good relationship with the government.

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