Sascoc board set to reject call
Some letters were signed by administrative staff without proof that this was a decision by their board
● SA Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (Sascoc) board members will meet on Tuesday to discuss the call for a special general meeting — and there are indications that they will reject it.
Canoeing SA made the request last week with two proposed agenda items: one to move for a vote of no confidence in the Sascoc executive, and the other to appoint a team of administrators in its place.
But already some board members are suggesting the meeting call by Canoeing SA could be invalid on at least two counts.
The letter by Canoeing SA to Sascoc listed 30 sports bodies that had backed the call for a meeting, more than one-third of total members, as required by the constitution.
But a source close to the board told the Sunday Times there were problems with some of the supporting documents.
Letters of support from some of the federations were not signed, the source said. “This alone could drop the required number to below the threshold required.
“And some letters were signed by administrative staff without proof that this was a decision by their board.”
The other potential problem was that there was no reason given for the proposed vote of no confidence.
There have also been murmurs that the Sascoc board is no longer constitutional after the resignation of Mark Alexander last week.
His departure reduced the total size to 11, if one includes acting CEO Ravi Govender and Barry Hendricks, the acting president who was placed on special leave amid allegations of unethical conduct.
Four of those 11 were co-opted onto the board and the argument is that this ratio now contravenes the Sascoc constitutional requirement stating that co-opted members shall not exceed four or one-third of the total board complement.
But the source close to the board countered that this clause was purely for the composition of the board at the start of its tenure, and not after retirements and resignations.
The board should start off with eight elected representatives, the chair of the athletes’ commission, four co-opted members and then the three ex-officio members, who include the CEO and the members of the International Olympic Committee and International Paralympic Committee.
Three of the original eight members elected in 2016 had retired after hitting the 70-year age limit, and another three had resigned. With Cecilia Molokwane getting voted in in a by-election last year, there were now just three elected members, including Hendricks.
But the source pointed out that the Sascoc constitution allowed for the board to co-opt members to fill vacancies.