Malaysia’s Youth and Sports Ministry has introduced a bill to amend the Sports Development Act 1997, enabling the government to deregister sports bodies found to be operating against national security, public order, or morality. The proposed legislation was presented for its first reading in the Dewan Rakyat on October 5, 2026, by Youth and Sports Minister Dr Mohammed Taufiq Johari.
The key provision, outlined in a new Section 41A, empowers the minister, after consulting the Sports Commissioner, to issue a gazetted declaration that immediately cancels a sports body’s registration. Once deregistered, the organization’s assets would transfer to the Director-General of Insolvency responsible for winding up its affairs, settling debts, and potentially transferring any surplus funds to the Consolidated Fund at the minister’s discretion.
Under the amendments, current and former office bearers, members, and employees of such sports organizations can be compelled to provide information related to the body’s financial accounts and affairs. Failure to comply may result in fines up to RM10,000, imprisonment for as long as five years, or both.
The bill also includes a mechanism allowing a replacement sports body to apply to the High Court to assume the assets and liabilities of the deregistered organization, provided a majority of the former membership joins and agrees to take on its debts.
Further provisions would require registered sports bodies to obtain prior approval from the Sports Commissioner before changing their name, address, constitution, or rules. Non-compliance may lead to fines up to RM5,000. The Commissioner is also vested with the authority to order amendments to a sports body’s constitution within a specified timeframe after considering the entity’s representations.
To enforce these measures, the bill grants specially authorized ministry officers and police personnel powers to record statements, seize documents, and seek Magistrate-issued search warrants. Materials obtained through such enforcement actions would be admissible as evidence in legal proceedings.
The legislation also addresses issues of financial misconduct within sports bodies, enabling prosecution of members who steal or misappropriate funds. However, legal action in these cases would require written consent from the public prosecutor.
Transparency measures include provisions for public inspection of documents filed with the Sports Commissioner, accessible for a fee upon demonstration of a lawful purpose. Additionally, the minister would have authority to regulate matters related to international anti-doping and safe sport obligations.
The government has acknowledged that implementing these amendments will incur additional costs, though the precise amount of the increased expenditure has not yet been disclosed. The bill now proceeds through the parliamentary process for further debate and approval.