SUMMARY OF INPUTS RECEIVED FROM ROLE PLAYERS WITH REGARD TO SOUTH AFRICAN SPORTS COMMISSION ACT REPEAL BILL, 2005


The bodies mentioned hereunder have been consulted with regard to the said Bill. (Save where indicated to the contrary, all the proposed amendments have been favorably considered):


The Department of Justice: The State Law Advisors have advised SRSA with their proposed amendments, which eventually led to the certification of the Bill. Most of their proposed amendments were cosmetic.


The South African Sports Commission (SASC): Most of the amendments proposed by the SASC were incorporated in the Bill. The following inputs of the SASC were, however, not included in the draft Bill for the reasons outlined hereunder: The SASC proposes in its version of the Repeal Bill that it may only be dissolved on 31 December 2005 or on the date when their auditors certify to the EA (Executive Authority) in writing that all their liabilities and obligations have been settled and fulfilled, whichever date occurs last. This implied that the SASC must still continue to exist after 1 April 2005 until 31 December 2005 or until the said date of certification by their auditors that may be at any time depending on the fulfilment of the said liabilities and obligations. The Repeal Bill, on the contrary, confirms that the SASC will be dissolved as soon as the Act commences upon which date the transitional provisions regarding assets, rights and the transfer of staff must be implemented.


The SASC also wished to incorporate a provision stating that all their employees must with effect from 1 April 2005 be regarded as public servants until such time as a new National Department of Sport and Recreation and the SASCOC have been established. The Repeal Bill states that the employees of the SASC shall, from the date of the envisaged commencement of the Repeal Bill (1 October 2005), be transferred to SRSA upon which they will become public servants. Also, it must be recognised, that there will not be a new Department; it is merely an expanded Department. The Repeal Bill provides for the transfer of the staff of the SASC to SRSA in terms of section 197 of the Labour Relations Act. The SASC further proposed the inclusion of a proviso slating that the same criteria which is applicable in deciding where to place employees of the SASC in the new Department of Sport and Recreation and SASCOC, must be applicable to employees of SRSA. As discussed above, the draft Bill does not cater for a new Department nor does it provide for the transfer of SRSA's employees to a new Department or the SASCOC. This does not, however, preclude mutually agreed upon shifts within the Department to suit the skills and experiences of employees.


The SASC was also of the view that the Bill must provide for –


Appropriate funding to the SASC via Parliament to perform all its transitional functions as from 1 April 2005 pending their proposed dissolution date as referred to above.


The 2004 Estimates of National Expenditure clearly indicated that no funds will be available for the SASC for the 2005 financial year, which decision cannot be revoked. A report has already been submitted to the National Treasury to arrange for the integration of the two structures. This has been agreed at the Steering and Monitoring Committees of which the SASC formed a part. The SASC has, accordingly, been instructed to close down its operations completely by 1 October 2005.


Again, SRSA's draft Repeal Bill does not provide for a n Department and states that the SASC will be dissolved when the Act commences Furthermore, the proposals for funding can only be dealt with as provisions of a Money Bill that can only be introduced by the Minister of Finance.


The National Treasury: The National Treasury recommended the all references in the Bill to the payment of fees, duties, taxes or other charges should be omitted from the Bill or alternatively it should be captured in a separate Money Bill. They advised that the stipulation in the Repeal Bill that all liabilities and obligations of the Commission must be settled and fulfilled by it when this Act takes effect, does not seem realistic and should be removed. They also recommended that the transfer of the staff of the Commission to SRSA must be done in accordance with section 197 of the Labour Relations Act. Certain minor cosmetic amendments were also been proposed by National Treasury.


The Department of Public Service and Administration jCDPSA):


The DPSA advised that:


The Public Servants Association (PSA): The PSA reiterated the stance of the DPSA that the transfer of the staff of the Commission to SRSA must be in full compliance with the provisions of section 197 as referred to above.


Nehawu: failed to make any representations on the Bill despite having been approached on two occasions in writing and on one occasion telephonically by SRSA in this regard.


Department of Labour: The Department of Labour also echoed the views of the DPSA that a specific date must be omitted from the draft Bill as the commencement date of the Bill is to be determined by the President by proclamation. They also furnished SRSA with minor cosmetic proposed amendments to the Bill.


Of all the national sport and recreation federations consulted in the above regard, only three sports federations, namely Snooker and Billiards South Africa, Motorsport South Africa and the South African Masters Sports Association have responded by indicating their concurrence with the draft Bill.


Cabinet recommended that the Bill should commence at a later date than I April 2005 as originally envisaged in the draft Bill. They also advised that all provisos in the Bill be redrafted as straight forward clauses.