Rizal Budiman (center), a spokesman for the complainants, said they had compromised a lot and did not want to tarnish the name of Kuantan FA. Pic by NSTP/ MUHD ASYRAF SAWAL

KUALA LUMPUR: Twenty-six former players and coaching staff, fed-up with the broken promises of Kuantan FA to pay their salaries, lodged a police report on Thursday.

The former employees of Kuantan FA said they have not received their salaries amounting to some RM3 million since 2016.

They are furious with the Kuantan FA management for making no effort to pay them while giving various excuses for almost three years.

Kuantan FA, who used to play in the Premier League, reportedly failed to pay their players' wages in 2016 (two and a half months) and 2017 (10 months).

Rizal Budiman, a spokesman for the complainants, said they had compromised a lot and did not want to tarnish the name of Kuantan FA.

But he said the club's management is just not concerned about their hardship.

He said though the Kuantan FA had been repeatedly instructed by the FA of Malaysia (FAM) to pay the 26 people, Kuantan FA have not done so.

"They failed to pay our salaries, resulting in some of us having to live in hardship.

“We are living in debts, our cars repossessed, we have to work at car wash and other odd-jobs. This is so heartbreaking.

"We formed a WhatsApp group and Kuantan FA president (Datuk Zaliza Zulkifli) and manager (Datuk Wan Solihin Wan Hassan) were added into the group but when we spoke about the salary issues, they did not respond and later left the group," he said when met on Thursday night along with 25 other former Kuantan FA players and staff who held a press conference to voice their grievances.

Rizal said the salary problems began in November, 2016 and continued till 2017 before another management, known as Marcerra United FC, took over early this year, using the name Marcerra-Kuantan FA.

"Despite the new management, the salary problems continued and the team were expelled from the Premier League in April this year.

“The Professional Footballers Association of Malaysia (PFAM) and FAM are aware of our problem and have ordered Kuantan FA to pay but they just refused to do so,” he said.

Former goalkeeper coach Mohd Rosfaizul Azuar Ali said he hopes someone could help them out, and he has appealed to FAM, MFL, PFAM, Pahang FA or Sports Minister Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman.

"We have waited patiently for so many years. We hope someone will help us. The management have to speak to us and start paying, and not giving excuses," he said.

Some of the players also questioned how Kuantan FA could still organise leagues in Pahang and were not punished when they were the reason behind their misery.

It is learnt that the 26 former Kuantan FA players and coaches were supposed to receive salaries between RM2,000 and RM12,000 a month, but their salaries were not paid for 13 months.