A prime piece of land in the heart of Kuala Lumpur will be up for grabs as the Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) plans to relocate within three years.
This was among the decisions made by the new board members who convened for the first time at Wisma OCM in Jalan Hang Jebat following the election on Sept 4.
OCM deputy president Datuk Hamidin Amin will head the marketing, sponsorship, and relocation committee.
The Council arrived at the decision due to several factors, which included being closer to modern sporting facilities, the increasing cost to maintain Wisma OCM, and because the current area will be transformed into a financial hub once the surrounding projects, including the Merdeka PNB 118, are completed.
Talks regarding the sale of the 0.73ha of land, which houses Wisma OCM and Hotel Olympic Malaysia, had been going on for some time. According to a valuation carried out last year, OCM stood to pocket some RM100 million from the sale of the land.
The duration of the contract between OCM and hotel management remains unclear.
“Other locations are being discussed … there’s a possibility of (relocating to) Putrajaya or Bukit Jalil,” said OCM secretary-general Datuk Nazifuddin Najib, during a press conference at Wisma OCM this afternoon.
“We plan to sell this building … and the proceeds will be used for the new place. This area will be more of a financial hub (in the near future).”
Nazifuddin revealed that it costs OCM “half a million ringgit annually” to maintain the building that also has its Sports Museum, Hall of Fame, several indoor halls and the offices of sports associations.
According to OCM’s website, the government allotted the Council the land on a 99-year lease. A nine-storey building (Wisma OCM), complete with parking bays, was constructed in 1991.
An MRT station (Merdeka) is right at its doorstep.
With Hamidin, who is also the FA of Malaysia president, placed in charge of the relocation process, OCM could be heading to Putrajaya.
This is because the national football body will be leaving Wisma FAM in Kelana Jaya and head to Precinct 5 in Putrajaya. The Asian Football Confederation and Asean Football Federation will also relocate to the ‘Soccer City’ in the administrative capital.
OCM president Tan Sri Norza Zakaria had, last month, hinted that Wisma OCM may not be relevant and accessible to its stakeholders.
The relocation plan, complete with access to modern sporting facilities, will further push OCM’s drive to start managing sports and elite athletes for the Olympics.
Norza earlier welcomed Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Faizal Azumu as OCM and representatives from the ministry discussed, among others, plans for the Council to play a more proactive role in preparing national athletes ahead of the Summer Games.
Here are Twentytwo13’s news highlights for today.
ISMAIL SABRI: MUHYIDDIN APPOINTED NATIONAL RECOVERY COUNCIL CHAIRMAN BASED ON HIS EXPERIENCE
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said the appointment of Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin as National Recovery Council (NRC) chairman was due to his experience in handling the pandemic during his tenure as prime minister.
Ismail said this in response to a question in the Dewan Rakyat by Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail (PH-Kulim Bandar Bahru).
Muhyiddin was appointed NRC chairman with ministerial status on Sept 4.
GOVT TO CUT DOWN COVID-19 SOPs to 10
Senior Minister (Defence) Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein said the government was working towards reducing 181 standard operating procedures currently in place under Phase 1-Phase 4 of the National Recovery Plan to only 10.
The move, according to Hishammuddin, was to simplify things for people as the country geared towards entering the endemic stage of Covid-19 late next month.
Meanwhile, a total of 15,669 new Covid-19 cases were reported today, bringing the total number of cases to 2,011,440.
According to Health Ministry director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah, Selangor topped the list with 2,632 cases, followed by Sarawak (1,983), Johor (1,974), Sabah (1,784) Penang (1,651), Kelantan (1,406) and Kedah (1,207).
SECURITY ALERT ISSUED BY JAPANESE GOVT ON POSSIBLE TERROR ACTS BASELESS, SAYS HISHAM
A security alert issued by the Japanese government yesterday on possible terrorist acts in Southeast Asia, including Malaysia, was baseless.
Speaking in the Dewan Rakyat today, Senior Minister (Defence) Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein said he had been briefed by military intelligence over the matter, adding that he would find out why Japan had issued the advisory through Wisma Putra.
The Japanese embassy, through a security advisory yesterday, stated there could be possible attacks in several places, including houses of worship, and had advised Japanese residents in Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Myanmar to stay away from crowded areas and to remain vigilant against terror attacks.
Yesterday, Inspector-General of Police Datuk Seri Acryl Sani Abdullah Sani said police had not received any information about security threats at houses of worship or public areas in the country.
TWENTYTWO13 IS MEDIA PARTNER FOR SIGA SPORT INTEGRITY WEEK 2021
Twentytwo13 has been named the media partner for the Sport Integrity Week 2021.
Organised by the Sport Integrity Global Alliance, the five-day event that started yesterday has some of the biggest names in the industry worldwide speaking on various topics – namely corruption in sports, governance and the need to create safe spaces.
SIGA chairman Franco Frattini reminded attendees that corruption in sports must be addressed and that it was important to invest in education.
UNI STUDENTS TO RETURN TO CAMPUS ON OCT 15
Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Noraini Ahmad today said students of higher learning institutions would be allowed to return to campus in stages beginning Oct 15.
Permission to return to campus, however, would only be given to fully vaccinated students, academic, non-academic staff.
Noraini said the decision to allow students to return to campus was made following discussions with the National Security Council, Health Ministry and the management of higher learning institutions, student unions and associations.
F1, MOTOGP FANS IN MALAYSIA CAN STILL WATCH RACES
Formula One and MotoGP fans in Malaysia will still get to watch their favourite drivers and riders in action despite Fox Sports Asia pulling the plug.
In our article published this morning, Twentytwo13 learnt that efforts have been made to ensure Astro continued airing the races, without additional charges to its customers.
An announcement regarding the matter would be made “soon”.
