As he ascended the podium to welcome the renewal of Netball SA’s partnership with Telkom in Sandton on Tuesday, the depressing state of the country’s sporting federations could surely not have been lost on SA Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (Sascoc) president Barry Hendricks.
Netball SA — under whose umbrella the Telkom Netball League, which has received a further two-year backing — spent much of the last year under a cloud after former president Cecilia Molokwane was suspended.
Athletics SA came under fire recently from parliament’s sports portfolio committee, which recommended the dissolution of its board over poor financial controls, while its president James Moloi remains suspended.
The South African Football Association (Safa) last month suspended four national executive committee (NEC) members after a scheduled meeting descended into chaos, and its president Danny Jordaan’s court case over fraud was on Tuesday postponed to next month.
@nkareng24 Netball SA: president suspended Athletics SA: president suspended Safa: four NEC members suspended; president in court…Sascoc president Barry Hendricks answers questions
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While conceding there are a myriad challenges within associations, Hendricks promised all will be resolved soon, though some have accused him and Sascoc, which should hold federations to account, of turning a blind eye.
Hendricks disputed this.
“We have been kept in the loop about the happenings at Netball SA,” he said.
“We even spoke to World Netball [about Molokwane’s pending case]. We will allow all processes to continue and will be there in the background to support Netball SA.”
It is unclear when the disciplinary case against Molokwane will take place. She has since been replaced by Mami Diale, as she could not stand for reelection.
Our policy is clear: before you write to us or the minister, you need to exhaust internal processes — that’s why they are there in the first place
Hendricks conceded the sports administration was beset by internal politics.
“It’s various dynamics. It’s the politics of sport. At Sascoc level, we need federations to have consistent and quality leadership to ensure federations rehabilitate and change for the better.”
He refuted claims he shut down attempts by a section of Safa’s NEC members to hold Jordaan accountable. Last year, Sowetan reported Gladwyn White, one of the four suspended NEC members accused of collapsing Safa’s March 7 meeting, wrote a letter to Hendricks and sports minister Gayton McKenzie, asking them to intervene in returning the association to normalcy.
“Our policy is clear: before you write to us or the minister, you need to exhaust internal processes — that’s why they are there in the first place.”
Hendricks deplored the collapse of the Safa NEC meeting. “We obviously cannot condone that; screaming and shouting in a meeting. We prefer that our federations have a level-headed approach to disputes.”
The Telkom Netball League will kick off next weekend in Gauteng with 16 teams.
Sowetan
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