AfriForum wrote to Adv. Dumisa Ntsebeza, ombudsman for transformation at Cricket South Africa (CSA) on 30 April 2021 after CSA had announced that it would also consider written submissions of current and former players, coaches, administrators and other stakeholders.
AfriForum has published a complete report in November 2020 already in which the negative impact of CSA’s transformation policy on the sport is outlined. It is explained in the report that the policy is discriminatory and has had a negative impact on performance and on the sport community in South Africa in particular.
Ronald Peters, Manager for Sport at AfriForum, says that the involvement of this civil rights organisation in the process is of the utmost importance. “At the moment, AfriForum represents almost 280 000 members. And because of the role that sport plays in our communities, it is import that the transformation ombudsman studies our inputs – which are based on well-researched facts. The current transformation process does not only discriminate, but also drives communities apart.
“We have to urgently make a distinction between transformation and a quota system. If CSA is indeed serious about transformation in sport, they should introduce sustainable talent identification and development programmes to provide less fortunate people with resources and opportunities that will help them to reach their full potential,” Peters says.
According to Peters, the only sustainable solution is the identification of talent and development programmes that only focus on empowering less fortunate people – and not on the colour of their skin.
AfriForum hopes that Adv. Ntsebeza will accept the letter in a positive spirit and that he will consider the critical elements in the letter and the report when he makes his recommendations for the restructuring of the CSA’s transformation policy.