The South African Football Association (Safa) appears hellbent on an elective congress by hook or by crook.
In so doing Safa would be pressing ahead with a process peppered with various violations of its own statutes.
On Saturday, Safa issued a press release stating that the elections "will go ahead as agreed by the Safa Congress on Saturday March 24 2018 and no other member, outside or within football, can decide otherwise".
Safa's declaration flies in the face of a Fifa-endorsed agreement between it and former referee Ace Ncobo, who flagged various procedural indiscretions committed in preparation for the election.
Chief among Ncobo's challenges was the fact that Safa statutes stipulate that an electoral committee must be elected at an extraordinary congress six months before the election.
"That means everything that has been done thus far is null and void. There is no Danny Jordaan that is running alone uncontested. The process must restart with the issuing of nominations done under the stewardship of the electoral code," said Ncobo, who withdrew his presidential bid at an entente brokered by Fifa envoy Phillip Chiyangwa, president of the Zimbabwe Football Association and Council of Southern Africa Football Associations (Cosafa)."Safa has also inserted an unconstitutional clause in article 21.4 of the statutes. That article grants voting rights to the outgoing executive members. The agreement that Jordaan signed says Safa must go through a constitutional amendment process to remove that article. That constitutional amendment must take place before the elective congress," said Ncobo.
To amend the constitution, Safa needs to call for a general assembly and needs a 30-day notice. It must send out the proposed amendment to the members at least 14 days before the general assembly. After the general assembly, they must submit the new statutes with any amendment to Fifa before they declare those amendments valid.
Safa's statement treats the agreement with disdain and its tone is dismissive on what Jordaan signed on.
"That the continued talk of Ace Ncobo is not an issue as the former referee is not a presidential candidate any more as he officially withdrew during a meeting brokered by ... Chiyangwa.
"According to that agreement, which was reached on Thursday 15 March 2018; nothing in that accord talks of the elections being postponed. The Safa NEC met on Thursday afternoon to put together an Electoral Committee as prescribed by the Safa Constitution and that committee will monitor and oversee Saturday's elections," read Safa's statement.
But, in a letter dated March 11 to Joyce Cook, chief membership affairs officer for Fifa, and Vernon Mosengo-Omba, director of development for Africa and the Caribbean, Safa chief executive Dennis Mumble concedes that "this would have the effect of rendering our elective conference a nullity on February 24 2018 if there is no electoral committee". On Thursday, Safa requested Cosafa to make available legal expert Itayi Ndudzo for a presentation to the NEC guiding them on the statutes and content of the agreement.
The Sunday Times understands Ndudzo was clear the electoral committee was non-negotiable, meaning they have to follow the rules. "They asked him whether it was compulsory to wait six months before the election - the answer was, read the electoral code."..