CSA board to get the finger

MINISTER of Sport Fikile Mbalula has asked to see the entire Cricket SA (CSA) board, a prelude - many feel - to him asking them to resign en masse. A date for the meeting hasn't been set as the minister's spokesman, Paena Galane, said Mbalula needed time for his legal advisers to digest the recently submitted CSA report.

Submitting the report, which contains CSA's response to Chris Nicholson's findings, is one of the actions suggested by the former judge.

Jacques Faul, CSA's acting CEO, confirmed they had received the minister's request, although he declined to elaborate.

Acting president Willie Basson was more forthcoming, saying there was a need for the CSA board and the minister to meet. "We need to look each other in the eye and talk further," he said.

Fears are growing, however, that CSA's board of directors are steering clear of some of Nicholson's more radical proposals, particularly those revolving around the role of independent non-executive directors.

If such suggestions came to pass, it would mean the powers of provincial presidents would be curtailed - something unlikely to meet the approval of the 11 board presidents.

Basson was understandably cagey about this, although he was prepared to share some of his thoughts on the always tricky issue of governance.

"If what we come up with is out of line with some of the international discussions taking place [like the ICC-commissioned Woolf report and the overhaul of governance structures by the Australian Cricket Board] and we don't at least debate them, we are going to look very silly," said Basson.

He went on to detail what he believes are significant differences between the governance of business and sport, saying sports bodies have to straddle a far more diverse constituency.

"The needs and wants of business and sport stakeholders differ markedly," said Basson.

There is a parallel discussion taking place elsewhere in the world at the moment, with the ICC executive board meeting in Dubai today to discuss Woolf's report. This report clearly guided Nicholson, particularly on the idea of directors drawn from outside the sport, and hedges to the concentration of power.

The debate in Dubai is expected to be robust, with India challenging what their board perceive to be a threat to their power base.

Basson said he was going to be part of today's debate - and was keeping a careful eye on the developments because this would be germane to what unfolded in SA cricket.

Meanwhile, CSA have also instituted an audit into the affairs of Easterns, long seen as allies of suspended CSA CEO Gerald Majola.

This is clearly part of Faul's desire to root out the culture of patronage that took hold of CSA under Majola.

Leonard Rajapaul, Easterns' CEO, said he wasn't aware of the investigation. He also took issue with CSA's contention that Easterns only received a qualified audit of their books two years ago.