Cricket South Africa (CSA) said on Tuesday it would cooperate if an independent investigation was held into alleged financial misappropriation.
“We would welcome such an inquiry,” CSA vice-president AK Khan said in a statement.
“We have every confidence that any such inquiry will find our finances to be in good order and in line with sound financial practices.
“We have said this all along. When our financial figures for the current year are audited and revealed at the annual meeting people will see how healthy our finances are and realise what a good job our CEO, Gerald Majola, and his management team are doing to provide the basis on which we can finance all our programmes, particularly on the development front, which are so vital to make cricket a truly national sport.”
Tubby Reddy, chief executive of the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (Sascoc), said on Monday the Olympic governing body would consider an internal inquiry into the cricket federation’s finances.
CSA president Mtutuzeli Nyoka called for an independent investigation last year after 40 staff members, including Majola, were paid bonuses for the successful hosting of the Indian Premier League (IPL) and ICC Champions Trophy tournaments without clearance from the federation’s remuneration committee.
An internal inquiry was held instead and Majola was given a slap on the wrist but was ultimately cleared.
Nyoka was fired from his post but won a court judgment after CSA was found to have dismissed him unlawfully.
It was later revealed Nyoka had alleged in court papers that R68-million had disappeared from a CSA bank account.
The federation said in a statement last week that the money had been held on behalf of the IPL as running costs for the Twenty20 competition which South Africa hosted in 2009.
Reddy nonetheless said the Sascoc board would consider an independent inquiry after the latest allegations.
CSA said on Tuesday that Majola had been instructed to provide Sascoc with the necessary financial information. — Sapa