JOHANNESBURG – Athletics South Africa (ASA) has given Sascoc until 4pm today to respond to their correspondence regarding the status of Aleck Skhosana as a candidate for the governing body’s presidency.
“We cannot wait for them indefinitely, to give us a response” said ASA legal representative Dev Maharaj at a press conference at Athletics House.
“It should have been a no brainer for them to decide on this. So we will give them until 4pm tomorrow (today) and should they fail to do so we will then take the matter to arbitration.”
ASA have nominated Skhosana for the Sascoc presidency, as well as the two vice-president positions plus one of board membership.
But the governing has since told them that their president is ineligible given that their nomination pack was incomplete.
“They said my certificate of good standing (with ASA) was not lodged,” Skhosana explained, standing up to show his ASA blazer as proof of his good standing. “I left my grey suits at home today to wear my official blazer,” he laughed.
Barry Hendricks is the incumbent SASCOC vice-president. Photo: www.sascoc.co.za
ASA said they had lodged all the required documents with the auditors Mazars.
“It is beyond us why they could say such a critical piece is missing,” said ASA chief executive Richard Stander.
ASA has since resent the so-called missing letter of good standing but they have not received any communication from either the auditors or Sascoc.
According to Maharaj, Mazars acknowledged receipt of the resent letter but ‘absolved themselves from the mandate’ which they found ‘highly irregular’.
Skhosana said he cannot help but think that there are those “hellbent on ensuring ASA is not involved in Sascoc”.
“The manner in which this has unfolded, there is indeed manipulation of the process.
“I am not in a position to say who is manipulating the process. The process is contaminated.”