Ali Thameem
The Secretary General of the Maldives Basketball Association (MBA), Visam Rasheed, stated that the association has not been informed of any investigation into its finances.
This follows a report by Mihaaru Sports on Monday, which highlighted a complaint filed at the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) regarding MBA’s financial activities.
Visam attributed the matter to a clerical error in the Sports Ministry’s Right to Information (RTI) response, which incorrectly indicated that MBA received MVR 195,371.40 twice for accommodation and food expenses for Sri Lankan club players. He clarified that MBA received this sum only once, in January 2023, to host two Sri Lankan clubs during the Zahir Naseer Memorial Invitational Basketball Tournament.
Visam emphasized that the association has not been notified of any formal investigation and that its financial reports to the Sports Ministry contained no discrepancies. He further clarified that MBA has never invited foreign clubs to participate in national tournaments.
He also cited a letter from the Sports Ministry affirming that no funds regarding the matter were provided to MBA in December 2022. Instead, the funding for the Sri Lankan clubs’ expenses was issued in January 2023.
The original RTI request was reportedly filed by Redwings BC player Mohamed Zeedhan Zaeem.
