The South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (Sascoc) has come out in support of the South African Rugby Union’s (Saru) decision on Thursday to resolve its differences internally.
The two warring parties — president Brian van Rooyen and deputy Andre Markgraaff — will try to resolve their considerable differences following the intervention by Sascoc.
Sascoc president Moss Mashishi told reporters on Friday he is positive about the latest turn of events in the ongoing rugby circus.
”We are particularly pleased with yesterday’s [Thursday’s] outcome,” Mashishi said after a two-hour meeting of his executive committee in Johannesburg on Friday morning.
”Sascoc feels that its involvement has had the desired effect of bringing together the management of South African rugby in a cohesive fashion. We have offered them whatever assistance Sascoc can give and we urge them to success,” he said. ”We felt that for the first time there has been positive development.”
On Thursday, for the first time, Mashishi and executive member Bob Tucker were given the opportunity to address the president’s council –”the supreme management body of Saru”.
Mashishi pointed out that the council had neglected its responsibility to exercise oversight of the management committee in the past, and that if it had done so it would probably not have been necessary for Sascoc to act.
”As a direct consequence of Sascoc’s involvement, the president’s council acknowledged that it had indeed been ‘derelict’ in discharging its duties, [and it] accepted full accountability for maintaining a functional management committee and sound corporate governance in the future, and for investigating the various allegations that have been made against its office-bearers,” Mashishi said.
”Council requested that it be given the opportunity to take charge, and to ensure that sound management is established.”
But Mashishi is not entirely convinced that the in-fighting that has bedevilled Saru in recent weeks has been completely resolved.
”While we are yet to be convinced that the management committee of Saru can work together successfully, we are happy to accede to the president’s council’s request.
”Therefore, an interim committee will not be necessary; we are no longer pursuing our recommendations, but will monitor their progress carefully.
Minister of Sport and Recreation Makhenkesi Stofile, meanwhile, was pessimistic about SA Rugby’s ability to resolve its problems, South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) radio news reported earlier on Friday.
”I think we should have little faith in it. I have very little faith myself,” Stofile said.
”I have seen similar truces in the past leading to a breakdown of communication and trust in the subsequent days. So, we are prepared to give them a chance, but believe me, I don’t have a lot of faith in what they say,” he told the SABC.
Mashishi acknowledged that confidence in the rugby bosses will be fragile, but said he is hopeful that the situation can be rectified, although no time frame has been set out.
”They bear a heavy responsibility to Saru, its stakeholders and to all the people of South Africa to resolve this strife. The investigation [into the Markgraaff dossier] must be transparent, and if we feel things are not going according to plan, then we will step in again.” — Sapa