Cricket South Africa’s summer of farcical cover-ups

The Proteas are gearing up for a busy summer with Australia and Sri Lanka visiting these shores. Gary Kirsten and his new coaching staff have kept a low profile as they settle into their new positions, which is in far contrast to the suits who live in the realm of corporate governance on Corlett Drive at the Wanderers.

It all started with Cricket South Africa (CSA) CEO Gerald Majola and 40 other senior officials allegedly helping themselves to R4.7 million in bonuses after the successful hosting of the Indian Premier League and ICC Champions Trophy in South Africa during 2009. Majola alone allegedly received R1.7 million, with the figures and payments not being reported to the CSA’s remunerations committee, Remco. Majola, who has held the position of CEO for more than 10 years, was cleared last November following an internal CSA investigation headed by vice-president AK Khan but was cautioned that any future payments must go through Remco. This decision was reportedly at odds with CSA president Mtutuzeli Nyoka’s view that the investigation should have been conducted by an independent external authority.

Nyoka was subsequently ousted by the CSA board in February via a vote of no confidence this year as he sought an audit into CSA’s financial affairs. He was reinstated in May following a successful South Gauteng High Court challenge to the dismissal in April, which stated Nyoka wasn’t given due notice of the meeting that ousted him.

On May 4, accounting firm KPMG were appointed to audit the bonuses associated with the IPL and ICC Champions Trophy. On July 30, the audit results were presented to the board. KPMG’s report stated that Majola possibly contravened the Companies Act in awarding the bonuses and a legal opinion should be sought. Subsequently, advocate Azhra Bham was appointed to look into Majola’s four possible breaches of the Act.

Bham delivered his findings to the CSA board orally the day before CSA’s AGM on August 20. Following the findings, Majola was issued with a “severe reprimand” while CSA resolved to institute better corporate governance procedures. Nyoka didn’t attend the AGM due to personal reasons but has attempted to receive a copy of the report since. He has since found the going tough and comical at times.

It has now been reported that CSA, after initially denying the report existed, couldn’t find the report and barred even board members from making copies. Is there a paper shortage at CSA?

After much fingering-pointing by the CSA’s top brass of who actually possessed it, CSA executive consultant Michael Owen-Smith said the report had been sent to Ajay Sooklal’s residence, in Sooklal’s capacity as chairperson of the CSA’s legal and governance committee. Sooklal initially said he didn’t know anything about the report being sent to him by CFO Nassei Appiah, who said he was off sick.

When asked why the report was sent to Sooklal’s home instead of being at the CSA offices where it was known Nyoka would seek it, Owen-Smith replied: “As I have explained, Mr Sooklal will be taking Dr Nyoka through the report in his capacity as chairman of the legal and governance committee, so he is the right person to handle it.” Bluntly put, Owen-Smith didn’t answer the question.

Events are now reaching a boiling point, with Nyoka informing CSA’s board that he has laid criminal charges against Majola with the Hawks for “potentially contravening the Corrupt Activities Act” in relation to KPMG’s audit. Nyoka is also reportedly preparing to go to the South Gauteng High Court to gain access to Bham’s report, after being promised the report twice last week to no avail.

Now, as if CSA’s behaviour couldn’t be any more suspicious, at a CSA special general meeting on September 8 the only items on the agenda reportedly related to Nyoka
. It was stated that he has caused damage to CSA’s reputation (the pot calling the kettle black?) because of his requesting the Bham report, that the national players wrote a letter calling for remedial action against Nyoka and that he had breached media protocol. The South African Cricketers’ Association has subsequently rejected all involvement on behalf of the players in the controversy while another vote of no confidence has been set against Nyoka for October 15.

It is my opinion Majola and the CSA seem complicit in a poorly constructed cover-up. By attempting to remove Nyoka a second time they seem to be doing their utmost to suppress the findings of the Bham report from ever becoming public. The “severe reprimand” initially given to Majola was a slap on the wrist and laughable considering that he could’ve broken the law. I say could’ve since no one knows, apart from those who have seen the report and were in the room when Bham delivered it verbally (another red flag), what the findings actually were.

This whole situation has been bungled from the very beginning. Nyoka might or might not have his own agenda. I can’t testify to that. But by CSA running interference in stopping him from receiving the report and it possibly being made public, which it should, along with their lax treatment of Majola, the CSA appears to be acting like a child whose hand was caught in the cookie jar but deny it ever happening. As a cricket fanatic, it is an extremely disappointing turn of events as a season of much promise approaches on the field. Off the field, it sounds like chaos.