Olympic bid
Cape Town’s Olympic Bid Company has closed the doors to public participation in the process of winning the Games for the city, critics told Rehana Rossouw
CAPE TOWN’S Olympic Bid Company is a farce which pays lip service to transparency and accountability to the public, but is structured to exclude them from real participation, critics have charged.
It emerged this week that the company gagged its detractors, board members and staff. And in answer to an avalanche of criticism, board members professed that they had no obligation to report back to their constituency communities.
The attack on the bid began with the resignation last week of its deputy chairman, Cape Town city councillor Clive Keegan, from his position. Keegan is still available to serve on the board.
He charged that bid CEO Chris Ball “manifestly and routinely ignored and marginalised” the bid company’s board. “I have been forced to the conclusion that Mr Ball and many of his senior associates have absolutely no understanding of the principles of transparency, accountability and democratic practice,” Keegan said in his letter of resignation.
Keegan was one of the few who survived the transition from former bid chairman Pick ‘n Pay chief Raymond Ackerman’s Olympic Bid Committee. It was dissoved in April last year when a summit in Cape Town decided a Section 21 company should be formed to “professionalise” the process. The summit agreed on constituencies which should be represented by board members of the company.
One of Keegan’s reasons for resigning was a “lack of frankness” in Ball’s negotiations with Ackerman and consultants employed by the former bid committee to pay costs they incurred before April last year.
Ackerman’s former right-hand man, Kevin Kevany, also hit out at Ball this week, revealing that he and Ackerman were silenced for almost a year by the bid company. Kevany’s public relations company lost a lucrative marketing contract with the bid when the new company was formed.
“The agreement I had with the company has just lapsed so I can talk.
“We were constrained by arrangements made to repay the money owing to us. We had to sign documents saying we would not comment at all on the bid and that they would in turn settle with us on a monthly basis,” Kevanny said.
“I was asked once when I came to the offices to collect a cheque if I would write a letter to the press saying how wonderful the bid is. I said I was not prepared to do so at this stage. It took a few days before I saw that cheque.”
Kevanny wasted no opportunity to make up for time lost during his gagging. One of the nicer comments he had about the bid company was that it was run like a “country club”.
“The bid company’s mismanagement and absolute contempt for the people of Cape Town is threatening the viability of the bid. They are completely dismissive of the public’s criticisms of what they are doing, and they will never win their support,” he said.
“Under Raymond Ackerman we had a committee representing all the major groups in the Cape, on an absolutely equal basis. Now we have a farce of accountability and transparency.
“Having paid lip service to the summit last year, the bid company has firmly closed the door to stakeholders.”
At a press conference on Wednesday where five of the 34 board members closed ranks around Ball to reject Keegan’s criticisms, they admitted that board members could be constrained from reporting to constituencies by agreement to keep information confidential.
“Board members might represent a constituency but if something confidential comes up, they are obliged not to take it back to their constituency. They may not break that confidentiality.
“This has only applied twice in one year,” said board member Michael Stekhoven.
The one occassion was when the board was briefed on the arrangement with Ackerman. The Mail & Guardian was unable to ascertain what information was withheld on the second occasion.
City councillor Llewellyn van Wyk said although the board was representative of key stakeholder groups, it had no obligation to be transparent to the community. “The board gets monthly reports so we all know what is going on.”
Ball explained that members came to meetings as members of a board although they are appointed by constituencies. “They have to act in a judicial capacity to look after the interests of the company,” he said.
“The bid is being put forward in the interests of South Africa, with the support of South Africans. These things which happened this week are par for the course in bidding, it has happened in other cities as well. It shouldn’t disturb the strength of the bid.”
Raymond Ackerman is out of the country and not available for comment, while a spokesman said bid chairman Minister of Sport Steve Tshwete had no comment.