Sascoc accused of vote rigging

ATHLETICS SA (ASA) is crying foul after its president was ousted from the SA Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (Sascoc) board after two polls.

Sascoc executive members needed to vote out one coopted member to reduce their number to 14, the maximum of directors allowed by the Olympic body’s constitution.

It came down to a two-horse race between ASA president Aleck Skhosana and Jerry Segwaba, said to be an ally of Sascoc president Gideon Sam.

There was a feeling in some quarters that athletics, which delivered the most Olympic medals for South Africa at the Rio Games, deserved a seat.

Skhosana won the first poll but lost the second, even though it ended level.

ASA vice-president Harold Adams fired off a letter to Sam demanding answers. The Sunday Times has a copy of the letter.

“The result of the first vote was seven votes to two votes, with four abstentions, in favour of . . . Skhosana being retained on the board. The result of the second vote returned a count of five votes each, a stalemate.

“We do not understand why the first vote count was not adopted and how five votes each can result in you unilaterally declaring that our president must be removed from the board.

“We believe that this is most undemocratic to the extreme.”

Sam declined to comment, saying this was a board matter and that Sport Minister Thembelani “Thulas” Nxesi had appealed to them to “keep our issues that are boardrelated out of the media”.

One board member, however, told the Sunday Times the first vote was problematic, claiming it had been manipulated by a Sascoc employee.

Adams said ASA wanted “an urgent response”.

“At this point in time [ASA] disputes your ruling and that our president will continue to serve on the [Sascoc] board by virtue of the fact that he was co-opted onto the board by 13 members and respectfully not just you.”

He added ASA was willing to go to arbitration if not satisfied with Sam’s response.

Adams told the Sunday Times he was awaiting a reply.