KONI wants details of MMI-proposed fund program

Zakki Hakim and Eva C. Komandjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The National Sports Council (KONI) is awaiting a follow-up report from PT Metropolitan Magnum Indonesia (MMI) on their partnership in a controversial fund-raising scheme for national sporting organizations.

"KONI is waiting to see what more they have to present for the proposal," KONI's sports business and industry commission head, Andhy Nena Wea, said on Wednesday.

He says MMI must provide further details of the program before KONI signs the agreement.

MMI, a subsidiary of Malaysian gaming company Magnum Corporation Berhad (MCB), has obtained a license from the Ministry of Social Affairs to operate the program.

Many Muslims oppose the program because they say it is nothing more than a form of gambling. However, Ruchadi, the ministry's secretary-general, told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday that the proposal by MMI was to raise funds through ticket sales for sports games, with spectators to be rewarded in the form of a lucky draw.

Ruchadi said the ministry had never received a proposal for any form of number guessing game as described in local media reports.

"We would not have endorsed the MMI proposal if it contained any form of gambling such as number guessing.

"As long as the proposal does not violate any law and is not a gambling game, we will grant them the license," Ruchadi said.

The fund-raising program is run in the form of gambling in Malaysia, according to Andhy, who said he visited MCB's headquarters in Kuala Lumpur in September after the MMI proposal was forwarded to his office.

He said that KONI told MMI to modify the game into something that would be acceptable to Indonesia's laws and culture.

He said that KONI would only follow up on the proposal if MMI received the necessary licenses from the relevant institutions, including the Ministry of Social Affairs and the Indonesian Council of Ulemas (MUI).

Earlier, KONI secretary-general Djohar Arifin Husin said that KONI and MMI signed a memorandum of understanding containing a clause allowing the sports organization to cancel the deal should the scheme contain any elements of gambling or anything else that could harm KONI's reputation.

He confirmed that KONI had been promised to receive a fixed Rp 3 billion plus 10 percent royalty every month.

Separately, the Indonesian Council of Ulemas said it could not issue a fatwa (Islamic religious edict) about the controversial sports draw until it received more details.

The council's secretary-general, Din Syamsuddin, told the Post the MUI had not received any details from KONI about the scheme and therefore could not say whether it would oppose the draw.

However, he said that KONI or the Ministry of Social Affairs should have discussed the draw with the MUI before signing any agreements with MMI.

Masdar Mas'udi, an expert on Islamic law at the Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) Muslim organization, told the Post that if the scheme was a door prize game it would not be gambling, and therefore not forbidden to Muslims.