Sascoc row turns ugly

21 May 2017 - 02:00 By DAVID ISAACSON
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The knives are out in a boardroom battle for survival at the country's beleaguered Olympic body.

South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (Sascoc) chief executive Tubby Reddy this week told the Sunday Times there was an orchestrated bid to oust him.

The alleged smoking gun is a sexual harassment claim against him by a Sascoc employee, made public this week by the organisation's president, Gideon Sam.

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Reddy dismissed the charge and had his lawyer send a letter to Sam and the board telling them he wanted to clear his name and warning he reserved the right to take action for defamation.

He also planned to discuss the matter with Sport Minister Thulas Nxesi.

Reddy said he had received no formal notification, apart from Sam's comments in a newspaper this week. "Nobody's charged me ... It's a pure smear campaign to get rid of me."

The Sascoc board meets in Johannesburg tomorrow to discuss this and two thorny issues some board members say are ultimately behind the move to push Reddy out.

Both matters relate to Sascoc contravening its own constitution.

First, the board overruled two senior counsel who had given the opinion that several candidates were not eligible to stand in the Sascoc elections last year. Three were voted in.

The other is the composition of the Sascoc board which, at 15-strong after four members were co-opted, exceeds the maximum of 14.

Some board members believe the move against Reddy started after he tried to exclude the candidates from the poll on the recommendation of the two advocates last year.

Sam wasn't affected, but some of his allies were. After being re-elected for a third term as president he said he wanted to overhaul Sascoc, doing away with the chief executive officer and chief financial officer posts.

Reddy said chief financial officer Vinesh Maharaj had recently warded off an attempt to oust him, also bringing in a lawyer.

Sam reiterated on Friday that he was not targeting anyone, and denied knowledge of a plot against Reddy.

Reddy, accused by his detractors of having too much power, is adamant the charges against him are trumped up. He further pointed out:

It was strange Sam had said the board had sought legal advice on the best way to proceed with charges against him — as stated in the newspaper article — instead of using Sascoc's existing process for grievances;

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He had written a letter of warning to the employee making the allegations against him after she had been found guilty of harassing another employee last year; and

• Two board members were prepared to write affidavits in his defence, testifying the claims against him had been discussed in December.

"Why has it taken so long to come to the table?" Reddy wondered. "It shows the orchestration."

He added that one board member had suggested he resign to escape looming embarrassment. "I told them, 'no, I've done nothing wrong'."

Sam declined to discuss the case against Reddy until after tomorrow's meeting, but he was unapologetic about seeking legal advice. "What's wrong with that?"

Board members approached by the Sunday Times said they had not been involved in talks about Reddy.

Some in the sports world are unhappy with what they perceive as Sascoc's slow handling of the two constitutional matters, complaining little has happened since these matters were heatedly discussed by the Sascoc general assembly last month.

Some believe the board should have been cut by now, and others feel new elections should be held for the sake of good governance. Some allege Sam is playing for time to change the constitution to make problems disappear.

Some sources say the cut would be a choice between another Sam ally, Jerry Segwaba, and Athletics SA president Aleck Skhosana, who they say should remain because his code is important in the Olympic context.

Sam insists he is guided by the constitution, adding he wants to focus on doing right by the competitors who are entering their international seasons.

As boardroom sparks fly, Sascoc's future looks bleak with the National Lotteries Commission set to apply regulations that many fear will cripple SA's Olympic sports as funds for international activities dry up.

sports@timesmedia.co.za

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