PUTRAJAYA – Sports development needs to be carried out in a holistic manner and not through impromptu planning, said Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh.
This comes after a statement from former prime minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob, who suggested that the current government should consider proceeding with the construction of drag circuits nationwide.
“For every sports development programme, we need to make sure that it is done holistically, not ad hoc,” said Hannah when met after a meeting at the Prime Minister’s Office today.
“Constructing a drag circuit not only involves (a lot of) money, but we would also need a large area of land with the approval of the state government.
“After the construction, we would then need to consider its maintenance, which is also not cheap.”
Recently, Ismail Sabri said his administration had earlier proposed building a drag circuit in every state, with a total allocation of RM20 million.
But the Youth and Sports Ministry responded in a statement yesterday, saying that the matter was never debated in Parliament and thus never approved.
Other than the RM20 million that was considered insufficient for the construction, the ministry added that the budget was announced without engaging it for the necessary data. – The Vibes, May 30, 2023
