It’s time for Mbalula to justify his portfolio

“Sport can create hope where once there was only despair.” Wise words. We’ve all heard them before, and now for the first time since 1995, the government needs to really listen to what the father of our nation taught them.

Fikile Mbalula is a colourful character, and he’s more active than any of his predecessors, but he’s never really had much to do.

He points fingers and yells when he feels it’s necessary, and he’s jumped in head-first once or twice to help stop the rot in fallen sports bodies, while bizarrely leaving others to battle between themselves.

He gives us a laugh now and then with his lyrical speeches that nobody really understands, and evokes emotion by swaying back and forth between the need for quotas and vague explanations of what the word “target” really means.

He hands over a few cheques for athletes in-between lavish parties and lots of travelling, and it seems to keep them quiet, if not entirely satisfied, and whenever anyone raises a stink he points to the National Sports Plan and tells us everything’s going to be fine.

It’s hard to pinpoint the purpose of a sports minister, a post that should probably be merged with the education ministry.

However, with South Africa’s future again under question, as we struggle to find common ground and understanding between various cultures in the wake of the xenophobic attacks,

Wesley Bo on

Mbalula finally has a chance to make his mark and prove the post he holds has real value.

“It is more powerful than governments in breaking down racial barriers.”

Wise words, and Mbalula knows them well. He’s repeated them many times.

While it is not his responsibility to deal with violent attacks on foreigners, facing an ambitious political future he has an opportunity to prove he is a leader, not merely a flamboyant politician.

Durban is all but guaranteed the 2022 Commonwealth Games, while the African Athletics Championships, showcasing one of the continent’s most popular sports, will be held here next year.

By mobilising citizens to get behind these events and others, and urging the nation to support other African participants, Mbalula and his superiors can lean on Madiba’s legacy and again create unity across boundaries, as was achieved in 1995.

By launching active campaigns, not merely retweeting hashtags and holding press conferences, the sports ministry can show us why its existence is necessary, as it can be used as a driving tool for change across the nation.

In ancient Greece, war was put on hold during the Olympic Games, and sport was one of the few areas in which South Africa could display its potential unity during isolation.

Around the world, various organisations are using sport to promote peace and empower communities.

With South Africa rocked by the recent violence in our streets, government will need to be active if it hopes to use sport as a catalyst to bring people together.

“Sport has the power to change the world. It has the power to inspire, the power to unite people in a way that little else does.”

Wise words. Mbalula and his peers should take heed and grab this chance to prove they are more than just a sideshow act in the country’s political landscape.