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Cricket SA members council agree to recognise interim board

Rihan Richards is leading Cricket South Africa as the acting president of the organisation's members counil.
Rihan Richards is leading Cricket South Africa as the acting president of the organisation's members counil.
Image: Frikkie Kapp/Gallo Images

Cricket South Africa's (CSA) highest authority‚ the members council‚ has acceded to sports minister Nathi Mthethwa's ultimatum and agreed to formally recognise the organisation’s interim board.

The members council is the organisation’s highest decision-making body made up of the 14 CSA provincial affiliates’ presidents with Northern Cape Cricket boss Rihan Richards heading it as acting president.

Richards did not respond to emailed questions at the time of publishing but TimesLIVE was reliably informed by several sources that the provincial presidents met at the weekend and have agreed to work with the interim board.

It is understood a resolution to that effect has been passed and it is only a matter of legally incorporating the interim structure as board of directors.

The nine-member interim board is chaired by retired Judge Zak Yacoob.

The other interim board members are Haroon Lorgat‚ Omphile Ramela‚ Judith February‚ Professor Andre Odendaal‚ Dr Stavros Nicolaou‚ Xolani Vonya‚ Andile Mbatha and Caroline Mampuru.

The CSA interim board was given the tough task of restoring stakeholder and public confidence in the administration of the game and their recognition by the members council will be a step in the right direction to steer the organisation out of the rough seas.

The interim board appeared to be winning the battle to put out the raging fires that have engulfed the organisation over the past two years.

They have in a space of two weeks since their installation adopted a tough-talking stance that is hoped will leave no stone unturned in fixing the governance shortcomings at CSA.

But the organisation was almost plunged back into a state of chaos last week after the members council rejected the interim board and refused to incorporate them as board of directors‚ leaving the temporary structure with no legal standing.

The members council said the interim board was fired with immediate effect and cited an apparent breakdown of trust and ordered them to desist from representing themselves as CSA representatives.

The CSA provincial bosses accused the interim board of running amok and undermining them in a hard-hitting letter sent to Mthethwa and other relevant stakeholders.

Mthethwa hit back with a hard-hitting letter of his own and dismissed the members council with contempt‚ saying nothing could be further from the truth as the interim board insisted it will not stop doing its work.

This article will updated with comments from CSA members council acting president Richards as soon as it becomes available.