The SA Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (Sascoc) elections might not happen on November 7 as expected.
This is because the Sascoc special general council that took place two weeks ago to reinstate acting president Barry Hendricks has been declared unlawful by the Sascoc board.
At the meeting, council members cast 47 votes in favour of Hendricks to be reinstated without him going through the disciplinary processes. International Olympic Committee (IOC) board member Dr Sam Ramsamy chaired the meeting, but it appears he may have violated the constitutional rights of Sascoc by getting involved in the internal matters rather than preside over the elections as his role as a facilitator states.
Members of the board, without the knowledge of Hendricks, launched a dispute in a letter that was signed by then acting president Aleck Skhosana to oppose the outcome of the council ruling.
The letter, sent to the members of the board and federations, is challenging the Sascoc general assembly’s decision to reinstate Hendricks without the disciplinary hearing processes.
The federations must respond to Sascoc before the end of business today to map a way forward.
A source close to the situation said Ramsamy had compromised himself and should recuse himself as elections facilitator. “The role of the facilitator is to intervene in election matters and not on council matters. The special general council is not allowed to vote on a disciplinary issue because there is a forum set up for that.
"Dr Ramsamy ignored the constitution and allowed the motion that was brought by the Gauteng Sports Confederation to reinstate Barry to stand. That was an error of judgment from his side,” explained the source.
But Ramsamy told Sowetan his conscience is clear and that he stands by his decision to chair the meeting and to support the motion.
“Yes, I chaired the meeting and took the instructions from the IOC. We resolved the suspension of Hendricks at the special general meeting by accepting 47 votes against 10, and that meant that his hearing was no longer necessary,” said Ramsamy.
The matter has been escalated to the IOC to make a final ruling. But Hendricks could challenge that ruling if it leaves him out in the cold. “As we wait for the reaction of the federations, the matter has been reported to the IOC so that they can intervene, this matter is beyond Sascoc powers now,” added Ramsamy.
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