Racist incident leads to golf club transformation
Assaulted golfer happy blacks are now recognised
Billionaire Robert Gumede has hired a top lawyer to represent 20-year-old professional golfer Jabulani Mabilane in his case against four white men who assaulted him because of his colour.
Gumede, of Mpumalanga, revealed this after an apology by Nelspruit Golf Club, where Mabilane was assaulted in October. The club also announced that the men who attacked Mabilane had been fired.
Mabilane, who is a full member of the club where his father and Gumede used to work as caddies, was assaulted and accused of being “silly” for playing in a “white club”.
He was rushed to hospital bleeding after the assault.
Gumede, who sponsored the club to the tune of R1.2-million each year to run its business, withdrew his sponsorship after Sowetan published the story.
Gumede said the four men belonged in jail. “This matter is now in the hands of the police and the prosecuting authority. I have hired a top lawyer to represent this young man.
“When I heard the story through a journalist from Sowetan, I was disgusted and decided to revoke my sponsorship. But now [after the club’s apology and the dismissal of the four men] I’m going back ... we want the club to even give bursaries to some deserving caddies.”
Gumede said he wanted other golf clubs in the country to emulate the Nelspruit Golf Club and do away with racism.
He committed to sponsor the club again if it acceded to a call for transformation.
The EFF, ANC Youth League and Sanco marched to the club in April demanding that it be racially transformed.
Announcing the apology, the club’s captain Zulu Cason said they had also taken a decision to pay caddies a basic salary .
He said they will also have four black board members and three white members on their seven-member board.
Although the club currently has over 500 members, it only has seven black members.
Cason said black membership will be increased to 50% in the near future. He said the procurement of goods and services will be done in such a way that it also favours blacks. “We are also changing the name of the club to Mbombela Golf Club.”
He said the day on which Mabilane was assaulted, October 15, will be turned into an anti-racism golf day.
Mbombela executive mayor Sibusiso Mathonsi, who formed part of the march to the club after the incident, said the transformation strategy will be escalated to other sporting codes in the municipality.
Mabilane said he was grateful that his ordeal will lead to transformation. “Yes, it was painful for me to be assaulted, but that did not go unnoticed because of the media, and Mr Gumede came in to make sure I get help.
“Now ... I’m free to go back to the club I love knowing that there will no longer be racism.”