Johannesburg – Fighting Athletics SA (ASA) factions have agreed to step down to make way for an International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) recognised ad hoc committee, it was announced on Sunday.
ASA president James Evans and his depleted board, consisting of vice-president Hendrick Ramaala and Geraldine Pillay, met Cheikh Thiare, a representative of the global body, on Sunday.
This follows his meeting with the majority of ASA members at Olympic House in Johannesburg on Saturday where the ASA interim board, led by chairman Sello Mokoena, also agreed to step down.
“I have met with both sides and I have found there was a stalemate in the federation and activities have come to a standstill. There is no better medication than the rule of democracy, and the decision will return to the ASA members,” Thiare said after Sunday's meeting.
The ad hoc committee had to consist of people from both factions and they would meet in the next two days to put names forward.
They have been given a three-month deadline before a new board had to be elected. The committee had to consist of an odd number of people and Thiare told the factions he would prefer a five-member interim board, with no more than seven members.
Among the conditions were that people named on the ad hoc committee could not stand during the ASA election.
Following Saturday's meeting Mokoena said Thiare confirmed the ASA council had not followed constitutional process in appointing the federation's interim board. He advised them to appoint a new ad hoc committee if they wanted it to be internationally recognised.
Evans has stood his ground since an attempt to remove his entire executive at the ASA annual general meeting in November, claiming it was ousted unconstitutionally.
The meeting on Saturday, organised by the interim board, included representatives from 15 of the federation's 17 provinces. One province apologised for its absence and Athletics Central North West chose not to participate.
Ramaala was also in attendance, but left the meeting and would not comment to the media. – Sapa