NC must answer for absence at national sporting championship

6 April 2022

Note to Editors: Please find attached soundbites in English & Afrikaans by Veronica van Dyk, MP.

The Democratic Alliance (DA) is demanding answers from the National and Provincial Departments of Sport, Arts and Culture following the Northern Cape’s failure to participate in the National School Sport Championship Autumn Games last week.

Based on a statement released by the national department, the Northern Cape was the only province that failed to send a team to the annual event in Pretoria. This is not the first time that the province’s lack of participation in big sporting events has raised eyebrows.

In February, the Namaqua district came under the spotlight after learners were almost deprived of the opportunity to qualify for the provincial games due to poor organizational issues, including the failure to plan ahead and timeously arrange transport for learners.

The DA is sceptical about whether the province’s absence at the Pretoria event was really due to an alleged “lack of interest” by Northern Cape learners and we suspect it has more to do with poor financial planning and a lack of organisation and foresight by all respective structures.

Like all provinces, the Northern Cape also has talented athletes. Learners who have been hard at work training and may stand a good chance at enjoying a future in sport, do not deserve to have their hopes and dreams dashed because of ongoing administrative failures within the province.

I have submitted queries to the MEC of Sport, Arts and Culture, Desery Fienies, to enquire about the reasons for the Northern Cape not being represented at the Autumn Games and I will also probe this in the national portfolio committee. The matter has also been referred to colleagues serving on the respective provincial portfolios to probe further, given the overlapping roles of Sport and Education in sport development and talent identification.

We owe it to school children everywhere to facilitate access to opportunities, not closing the door to opportunities in their faces and robbing them of a potential future in sport.

Issued by Veronica van Dyk, Deputy Shadow Minister of Sports, Arts & Culture, 6 April 2022