KUALA LUMPUR: Former Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin says the decision to pay former national Under-16 coach Lim Teong Kim a monthly tax free salary of RM175,000 was fair as he had a huge reputation when he was the assistant youth trainer of Bayern Munich.
Khairy added that Teong Kim was successful in developing German internationals Thomas Muller and Tony Kroos when they were in Bayern’s youth teams.
“The salary was based on an offer to bring back Teong Kim to Malaysia to head the National Football Development Programme (NFDP).
“It is up to the current Sports Minister (Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman) to decide on Teong Kim’s contract,” said Khairy on Sunday.
Khairy said at that time, he and the National Sports Council (NSC) had already reviewed the issue of his salary as a long-term investment.
Syed Saddiq confirmed on Saturday that his ministry did not sack Teong Kim as director of the Mokhtar Dahari Academy.
However, the minister added that Teong Kim’s salary will be reviewed in accordance to the current financial situation after the ongoing AFC Under-16 Championship.