Nyakallo Tefu
Parliament has ordered the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee to submit its financial statements within the next seven days.
The Portfolio Committee on Sports, Arts and Culture and the Select Committee on Education, Technology, Sports, Arts and Culture raised deep concerns about SASCOC’s inability to produce its financial statements during a virtual meeting on Wednesday.
At the virtual meeting, SASCOC presented its annual performance plan, which did not include performance targets, indicators and the current financial report.
The sports committees’ chairpersons questioned the stability and accountability of SASCOC whether it could perform its functions.
“A mere few months to the postponed 2021 Olympics Games in Japan, yet the entity does not have a CEO and a CFO. How can there be stability and accountability,” the committees asked.
The chairpersons of the committees said they were concerned that the board failed to do the basic things such as the non-existence of plans for the July 2021 Olympic, with Acting CEO doubling up as Acting CFO.
According to the committees, this brings about lack of credibility.
Furthermore, the committees said, the governance of such a sporting body should not be questionable in any way.
“If governance at SASCOC is compromised, how will they be able to whip affiliated federations,” said the committees.
Parliament also called for a new board to be elected.
“It would be preferable that the board members and ministry facilitate the pending annual general meeting even if it means that it can be done virtually. The overstay of the board is unacceptable given the challenges the entity faces.”
