Jordaan ‘won’t give up football’
DANNY Jordaan is clinging to his position of South African Football Association president – despite his appointment as Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality mayor.
He insists there are no legal and constitutional imperatives preventing him from assuming the dual role of Safa head and leading one of the country’s biggest metros.
“No, there’s no conflict and let’s not make as if there is. There’s no contradiction in the two positions,” Jordaan said yesterday.
He admits, though, that he will have to do a tough balancing act.
“Nothing overwhelms me. You will still see the same commitment. It’s a sound management and balancing act”
On Monday, the ANC paraded Jordaan as Nelson Mandela Bay mayor, in what was a ploy to thwart the attempts by opposition parties, notably the DA, to wrest the municipality from the governing party’s control.
The move has been met with an uproar, with some opposition parties complaining of a conflict of interest.
Jordaan, who served as an ANC MP under Nelson Mandela between 1994 and 1997, is undeterred.
“You see, in Safa, there are those permanent, employed staff and there are the voluntary, non-paid contributing officials. I am a voluntary, unpaid elected official. So you must draw a distinction and there is no contradiction or conflict between those two positions,” he said, detailing a list of local and foreign highranking officials playing dual roles.
He said former Safa vicepresident Chief Mwelo Nonkonyana was an MP of the ANC for years.
“An executive member of Fifa is the minister of sport of Russia. The king of Malaysia was an executive member of Fifa. The royal prince of Jordan is a Fifa executive member.”
Safa spokesman Dominic Chimhavi said Jordaan was not receiving payment.
“He holds a non-executive position, which doesn’t come with any remuneration. It’s an unpaid position and he has never received a single allowance from Safa. He has never received a single cent from this organisation.”
Jordaan’s appointment makes him the fourth mayor in six years in the municipality, which is beset by factionalism, infighting and political instability.
The internal strife has severely hampered service provision, with the ANC managing to hang on to the metro in the 2011 local government election with only 51.9% of the vote – down from 66.5% in 2006.
Jordaan admits he has his work cut out restoring stability and public confidence.
He believes, however, that his credentials as a shrewd administrator will enable him to overcome the daunting tasks, including uniting the feuding factions in the region.
He warns that he will not pander to the interests of any faction. Instead, his approach will be people-oriented.
“I am the mayor of Nelson Mandela and not a mayor of a faction. It means I am a mayor of the city – and of the people, and whether you are this side or that side, all of us must work together.”
The former chief executive of the 2010 World Cup local organising committee seems to espouse rising above party politics.
“I think we must turn the fortunes in favour of the people, first and foremost. It can be about the party, but the party must serve the people.”
He appears to intend to adopt a pragmatic approach in his attempts to restore stability in Nelson Mandela Bay.
“Of course it is a daunting task, but I don’t want to make an assessment based on a superficial basis. I want to get detailed, precise and accurate information,” he says.
Jordaan’s appointment could indicate that the ANC is in panic mode before the local government elections next year.
“I am not going there focusing on the election. Again, I am focusing on the problems at hand.”
Jordaan hints that his interest still lies with football.
“This is the immediate short-term task. I remain clear, I am committed to South African football.”
WHATEVER the politics surrounding the choice of Danny Jordaan as mayor of the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality might be, the appointment marks one of few instances when the ANC has chosen a proven administrator ahead of a party hack to lead a local government.
He replaces 83-year-old Benson Fihla.
This is a positive development for the local government system as a whole and not just a plus for the Eastern Cape municipality.
The ANC tends to treat municipalities as a dumping ground for those who could not get positions elsewhere.
Local authorities are sometimes more important than the national government because that is where service delivery takes place.
It is local councillors, not MPs or MPLs, who often bear the brunt from a disaffected community when services have not been delivered.
To choose, as it had done with Jordaan’s predecessor, an 83-year-old was a slap in the face of the voters.
While there might be octogenarians whose energy and sharpness of mind is better than that of many 40-year-olds, it is accepted convention that with advanced age comes the depletion of the energy to carry out some tasks one once performed effortlessly.
That said, the South African Football Association president must quit his sports administration job.
Like all South Africans, the people of Nelson Mandela Bay and football fans around the country are entitled to demand that those who lead their government or their sport must be single-minded in their focus.
It is not an unrealistic expectation.
The municipality that includes the city of Port Elizabeth, Uitenhage and Despatch’s instability is best illustrated by its having had four mayors in six years.
South African football has been in decline over the past 20 years, largely because of poor leadership, and it is only now that it is starting to show signs of resurgence.
If the ANC wanted a ceremonial mayor it should have kept Fihla. One need only listen to talk shows or read the letters columns in newspapers to appreciate South Africans do not play games when it comes to their sports.
Jordaan might be a talented administrator, but not even he can serve these two masters with distinction. For either role, serving with distinction is a basic requirement.