The Kelantan government will introduce a new requirement that any non-governmental organisation (NGO) or private entity must obtain prior approval before using the state’s name for programmes or events.
State Youth, Sports, NGO and Community Unity Committee chairman Zamakhshari Muhamad said the move was aimed at protecting Kelantan’s reputation following controversies involving events that used the state’s name but were not organised by the government.
He said the decision was made after a separate event using the name “Kelantan” allegedly failed to proceed despite organisers having collected participation fees.
According to Zamakhshari, the programme had no connection with the state government, but the use of the state’s name caused members of the public to assume it was an official government-backed event.
“From now on, any programme organised by NGOs or private parties that uses the name Kelantan must obtain approval from the state government.
“When the name Kelantan is used, permission will be required,” he said during a press conference after the State Executive Council meeting at Kompleks Kota Darulnaim on Wednesday.
He was commenting on the cancellation of the Kelantan International Marathon, which went viral on social media after participants claimed they had already paid registration fees.
Zamakhshari said the organisers had previously met him several months ago to present their proposal for the event.
However, he said the state government had advised them to begin on a smaller scale after considering their experience and background, as they were not from the event management field.
“However, they continued with the organisation, and various issues eventually emerged.
“I do not want to say it was a fraud, but there may have been weaknesses in management that caused the programme to fail, and participants are now requesting refunds,” he said.
He stressed that the state government had no involvement in organising the event and was not responsible for the issues faced by participants.
“The problem belongs to the organisers. The state government has absolutely no involvement.
“However, when the name Kelantan is used, people assume the government is behind it. When the programme fails, the name Kelantan is affected,” he said.
Zamakhshari added that a formal application mechanism would be introduced, with each proposal involving the use of the state’s name reviewed according to the relevant Exco portfolio.
He said the government would assess the programme details, content and the organiser’s capability before granting approval to ensure Kelantan’s reputation is not affected by poorly managed events.
