Football match held in honour of late prosecutor who fought against match-fixing

The legal fraternity came together on Tuesday (July 19) in a football match to celebrate a prosecutor who was devoted to cleaning up the beautiful game.

Officers from the Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC) and judiciary, members of the Criminal Bar and Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Edwin Tong were among the players at Jalan Besar Stadium to remember Mr G. Kannan, who died last month at 52.

He died in an accident while on holiday in Phuket.

Mr Kannan, who was a senior director and senior state counsel in the AGC's Crime Division, set up a task force in AGC to combat match-fixing which oversaw several high-profile prosecutions.

They included the case against Rajendran R. Kurusamy who attempted to fix a game in the 2015 South-East Asian (SEA) Games between Timor-Leste and Malaysia. The 55-year-old Singaporean was sentenced to four years' jail.

A minute of applause was held before the match on Tuesday, which was organised by the AGC and the Criminal Bar, and supported by the Football Association of Singapore.

Deputy Attorney-General Hri Kumar Nair, who also took to the field in the game, gave a speech before the kick-off, paying tribute to Mr Kannan.

He said: "He was with us in AGC for so many years, and all of us, his colleagues and friends, remember him for (his) wisdom, his wit, his dedication, his professionalism and most of all his friendship.

"And the fact that we have come together, both prosecutors and the defence Bar, as well as Minister Edwin Tong and Justice Kwek Mean Luck, shows the amount of respect Kannan has earned from all of us and sadly we will miss him."

In recognition of Mr Kannan's desire to give back to football, a donation of $16,000 was made in his name to SportCares, the philanthropic arm of Sport Singapore.

The money was collected from the match participants, Mr Kannan's colleagues, members of the Criminal Bar as well as his family and friends, with a cheque presented by Mr Nair to director of SportCares Shawn Lim.

The match, which also featured players from the Ministry of Manpower, was played over an hour in a competitive spirit.

 

The two teams were named after Mr Kannan's favourite players, former Manchester United legends Eric Cantona and Bryan Robson who both wore the No. 7 jersey.

All the players on Tuesday wore the same number.

Mr Kannan, who first joined AGC in 1995 and had more than 20 years' experience as a prosecutor, was an avid football fan.

In an interview published in a magazine in 2017, he said: "I've been a lawyer for over 20 years and can't see myself having done anything else... except maybe playing right wing for Manchester United."

In statement on Tuesday, AGC said the task force set up by Mr Kannan developed Singapore's capability in investigating and prosecuting match-fixing offences, and improved the country's reputation in the international sporting scene.

Tuesday's tribute was appreciated by Mr Kannan's family, said his wife Chia Su Anne who was present at the match.

In a statement to The Straits Times, she said: "Kannan was a massive football and Manchester United fan and he would have so loved this, and would also have felt very honoured.

"It is wonderful to see so many familiar faces at the stadium and to watch members of the legal fraternity bond over a game of football."