Minister stumps cricket bosses
Mthethwa signals seismic shake-up of sport in SA after years of ‘lip service’
● Sports minister Nathi Mthethwa has come out guns blazing at Cricket SA (CSA), accusing cricket bosses of “destroying the sport” and reducing the game to “a shadow of our former self”.
The minister’s blunt assessment of the state of cricket in SA came at the end of a week in which he lost patience with administrators, and took the first steps towards defunding and deregistering the game. The move effectively puts South African cricket back to its isolation days pre-1992.
His decision is expected to be gazetted this week.
Apart from far-reaching implications for cricket — already hit by financial losses arising from
Covid-19 and poor performances from the Proteas on the field — the showdown could presage a broader battle between the government and sporting codes over issues of autonomy, transformation and administration.
In his move against CSA this week, Mthethwa also took aim at the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (Sascoc), which he accused of backing out of its support for the acceptance of a new governance structure for cricket, which was voted down last week.
The first casualty of the minister’s action could be the Proteas yet-to-be-confirmed tour of the West Indies in June. With the Proteas out in the cold there are likely to be concerted efforts to restore their status before the planned West Indies tour.
“They can play but not as an official team,” said a CSA insider. “The question then is, who is going to go through the cost of playing friendly matches? Also, I don’t know whether our cricketers will become rebel cricketers, while the sponsors might ask, ‘How will the government see me if I continue to sponsor a sport that’s not recognised?’ ”
But Sascoc hit back at Mthethwa last night, saying in a statement he had “overreached” and flouted his own National Sport and Recreation Act.
The umbrella body also accused him of “strong-arming” the sports body.
Sascoc said the CSA Members Council had at two special general meetings decided against adopting the new Memorandum of Incorporation (MOI). “The point of decision centres such as SGMs, in any organisation, is for legitimate members of the organisation to have a proper say in the governance of their affairs without undue influence or being strongarmed.”
Sascoc argued further that Mthethwa “purposely contradicts section 13 (5) (b) (ii) of the [National Sport and Recreation] Act which states: ‘The minister may not interfere in matters relating to the selection of teams, administration of sport and appointment of, termination of the service of, the executive members of the sport and recreation body’.
“The minister is flouting his own Act.” Sascoc pointed out it had requested meetings with Mthethwa “and the minister’s response … was that the matter was firmly in his hands and that he would meet with the Sascoc board when he deems fit to do so”.
Sascoc said it agreed that “the CSA governance model requires some rethink”, and that could be done through discussion.
Mthethwa refused to back down on his decision to strip CSA of national recognition, and went further yesterday, blasting the state of the game in an interview with the Sunday Times. “We are a shadow of our former self. We used to be in the big four in the world. Today we are nowhere because we have been folding our arms and having these administrators one after another destroying cricket. There is no cricket in South Africa right now.
“The very fact that we are where we are, we have not even won any World Cup but we are at the lowest. I have been trying to nudge and plead with Cricket SA but it can’t continue like this.”
He accused cricket bosses of pursuing their own interests and of “not wanting to democratise the space”, citing the Nicholson report of 2012 on the state of South African cricket administration and the King 4 corporate governance code, in his insistence that the game be run by an independent board.
Cricket sources warned that the minister’s move has effectively consigned the Proteas to the international wilderness, which will seriously inhibit the game’s ability to generate income.
The minister’s decision to invoke section 13 of the National Sports and Recreation Act follows the failure of the CSA Members’ Council (MC) to fall in line with governance remedies as contained in a revised memorandum of incorporation (MOI).
“This is the most severe sanction you could possibly contemplate. There was enough [money] to see through the rest of the year,” said an insider, who did not want to be named. “But the problem now is you have to contain. It is pointless spending on anything if you have no return on it.”
In anticipation of the minister’s decision, the organisation did scenario planning. The prognosis was bleak.
The insider predicted that some cost saving would have to be undertaken. This would affect the entire organisation from the players to grounds and kitchen staff.
Some may accuse the MC of brinkmanship, but others said the minister has overstepped his mark. Mthethwa, with the help of an interim board, wants the majority of CSA’s future board to be independents and
for the board to be chaired by an independent.
“My view is he wants to dictate the makeup of the board. He will cripple this sport forever. The sponsors will walk away,” said a Sascoc member, who also wished to remain anonymous.
He said the only way the process could be reversed was if the MC agreed to the revised MOI, but it could not contest the minister’s order.
“The MC can’t contest the minister’s order in court as CSA, but as members of its council. CSA won’t contest the minister’s order because that is the board’s decision.
“That is exactly the reason why there is a revised MOI, to remove the so-called two centres of power. That has been the governance weakness which was compounded by the fact that the same people who sat on the council sat on the board.”
Detractors of the revised MOI have asked why it has an independent chair as a requirement if the Nicholson report, which is used as the basis for much of the governance changes, does not mention it.
“It is not specifically stated so,” said the CSA insider. “It is common practice for an independent board to be chaired by an independent. It stands to reason. In the spirit of Nicholson you need qualified, skilled independent directors and it is a red herring that is thrown around that they are not cricket people.”
Mthethwa also sounded a warning to other sporting codes that refused to fall in line with transformation objectives.
“We are on a mission for transformation in sport,” the minister told the Sunday Times. “No sports will be left untouched. No sporting code will be left to be uncontrolled or continue paying lip service. It has been almost 30 years now.
“It is time for action. Without action it is clear there would be no change in sport. We are tired of the same stories.
“We also emphasise good governance in sport. They’ll go to the ends of the Earth rather than change and not democratise the process.
“Cricket is not just an isolated sporting code. We are also looking closely at the report of the Eminent Persons Group [established to look into transformation of sport]. We want to correct what needs to be corrected. It can’t be that the same issues that were raised under apartheid are still being raised today.
“Yes, our attitude is to nudge stakeholders in the hope that the sport resolves its matters. If they don’t, we take matters procedurally by going to the confederation [Sascoc]. But when the confederation refers the matter to us, we need to intervene.
“We don’t want to intervene in sport. If people put the interest of the country and the sport first, things can be resolved.
“I’m tired of hearing how untransformed we are in sport.
“We are looking at all the sporting codes. My team is working on Sascoc and the [ministerial] report.”
The fear among some Sascoc officials is that the minister wants to take over cricket, presumably by appointing the independent members himself.
Sascoc, however, has not seen CSA’s proposed MOI, which would outline how the independents are appointed.
Two previous sport ministers agreed not to push for an independent chair of a sports body, and not to insist on a majority of independents.
Mthethwa’s predecessor, Tokozile Xasa, agreed not to force Sascoc to implement the recommendation of the Zulman committee that they have an independent chair.
And in 2012, Fikile Mbalula agreed not to enforce the Nicholson inquiry recommendation of an independent majority.
A statement released by CSA staff yesterday implored Mthethwa to reconsider.
“We are aggrieved by the situation and are concerned about our jobs and, therefore, livelihoods,” the statement read.
“We therefore implore the minister … to reconsider the current position.
“We implore the interim board and the Members’ Council to go back to the table and have a meeting of the minds and find an amicable solution in the interests of all who serve this wonderful game.”