Rather than admonish individual sports organisations, the Sports Ministry should examine the deficiencies in the system which have slowed transformation initiatives.
Transformation, according to Greg Fredericks, the Gauteng Cricket Board’s CEO and a former chief director of the national department of Sports and Recreation, is about a lot more than simply counting numbers.
Fredericks said it was vital that the Sports Ministry work hand-in-hand with sports federations to ensure grass roots initiatives are enhanced and most importantly sustained.
That, said Fredericks, can only occur if the Sports Ministry work with federations. Using cricket as an example, Fredericks said: “We’re all on the same side as regards transformation. But it can’t be (the federations) alone, we need government particularly at local level to buy in and provide support as well, because that’s a vital part of driving the transformation initiatives.
”Citing the poor support the Gauteng Cricket Board receives from the Gauteng Sports Department, Fredericks believed Mbalula would be better placed demanding that local councils provide improved support to federations in the regions.”Our council here has done nothing for us.
The Gauteng Cricket Board has not received a cent from local government,” said Fredericks.”Cricket is a unique sport, it doesn’t finish in 80 or 90 minutes, we need a whole day or more and that means we need to have facilities that can accommodate space to feed players, ablution areas and in some cases transport.
”Then there is maintaining the field. (The GCB) is paying for eight groundsmen around the region to prepare fields and that should be the job of local council.
The expertise (coaching) and equipment, we are happy to hand out, but we need help with regard to sustaining the facilities, where we get the young kids to play.
”I’m not talking here about Old Eds or Pirates, but clubs in our poorest areas, like with Dobsonville and Soweto, who are talking about merging now and forming one club, because financially, they can’t sustain themselves individually.
How can you have one club for an area as big as Soweto?
”At school level, the problem is also a matter of finance. “A private school like St Stithians College has more (cricket) fields than all the black schools in this province put together. These are significant challenges and they can’t be cricket’s alone, government, particularly at local level, needs to provide support.”
The Star