Abbas: Youths should be facilitated sports opportunities to the greatest extent possible

Velidhoo MP Mohamed Abbas states youths should be facilitated sports and entertainment opportunities to the greatest extent possible in terms of the nation’s financial state.

He made the remark while debating on the amendment to Sports Act at Tuesday’s parliamentary sitting.

In this regard, he underscored that the Sports Act had long had a provision against discrimination between people. On the contrary, he noted that smaller populations lacked opportunities to engage in sports in the most meaningful manner. He pointed out his constituency as an example of such.

“Honorable Speaker, I have to talk about the negligence of the former administration. The former administration failed to complete a football stadium for the youths in a five-year term. It still remains as a place that gets flooded like a swimming pool whenever it rains,” he said, while underscoring the unfinished stadium has been left for ruins.

“The next administration will then have to build a stadium from the state budget,” he added.

Abbas stressed that Maldives would have been one the richest nations in the region if revenue earned previously had been utilized in good faith. On this note, he accused the former administrations of stealing revenue earned to the state “in any way they could get their hands on it”.

“Honorable Speaker, they have become millionaires without sustaining a single scratch on their bodies. Without doing any hard work with their hands or bending their backs. Where did this money come from? It is clearly illegal wealth,” he said.

Abbas said youths should be able to engage in sports while remaining on their islands. In this trajectory, he emphasized that youths should be facilitated sports to the greatest extent possible in terms of the nation’s financial state while raising the issue of youths being out on the streets.

“Things should be arranged in a manner youths are able to engage in sports and entertainment to the greatest extent possible in terms of the nation’s financial state to ensure their free time is spent on something beneficial to the society and the nation,” he added.

The amendment to the Sports Act was submitted by PNC’s Dhidhdhoo MP Abdul Latheef Mohamed on behalf of the current administration. Amending the Sports Act is a crucial target of the current administration which has stated that the amendment will resolve prominent challenges faced in the sports sector at present.