Johannesburg – The proposed constitutional amendments are not meant to sideline PSL officials or to stop them from contesting for the presidential elections next year, according to the SA Football Association (Safa).
Safa’s chairperson of the legal committee Poobie Govindasamy said that these were outstanding proposals from 2018 that were deferred to the next constitutional congress that did not happen because Safa had to consult with the PSL.
He said it was now taking the proposals to its members for a discussion and a workshop before it goes to the congress.
“To consider the discussion around the proposal from the executive committee to amend the constitution, the legal and constitution committee are involved in the workshop,” said Govindasamy.
“If you look at the agenda, you find that every year when we go to the congress, you find an item that says ‘any amendments to the constitution’, and when you look at the powers of the executive committee, the powers of the members, PSL, Safa regions, associate members, they all have the right to make proposals to amend the constitution and this comes up every year.”
Regarding the allegations that these proposed amendments were a deliberate effort to block the PSL bosses from contesting the elections, Govindasamy said there was no such a move.
“The new proposal says that ‘any person, except the chairperson of the league and any member from the league, shall be eligible for elections as president or a member of the NEC, provided such a member is nominated by a member in good standing and complies with eligibility provisions provided for in these statues and other Safa regulations’.
“The chairperson of the league cannot stand for the elections because he holds the position of Safa vice-president.
“It is the same with the three other league members because they serve in the Safa NEC. If they want to contest, they must not be one of those four people who were elected in the PSL.
“So, if the chairperson of the league or any member of the league who is on our executive committee wants to contest the elections, they must relinquish their position in the PSL. There’s no discrimination at all and it’s not political.
“The major amendments have to do with us aligning our constitution with Fifa and CAF statutes.
When Dr Patrice Motsepe stood for the CAF presidency, he had to get a nomination from his host country and we had to get three other nominations from Botswana, Mozambique, Zambia to support him.
We are introducing similar things in our constitution, that if you want to stand for elections… you will be proposed by your own region,” said Govindasamy .
“There’s nothing sinister to take our members by surprise and you need two thirds majority to change the constitution and that’s very difficult.”
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