PIETERMARITZBURG: 6 September 2007

Honourable Speaker 

When you listen and read the MEC’s report on sport you feel very excited about the future.

Sadly, in my opinion, it is not as “rosy”. Firstly, the sports portfolio committee had not effectively met for two months until last month, due to not having a quorum. At that last meeting we passed minutes from October 2006.

Surely the people of KwaZulu Natal who bankroll this House deserve better. 

A thing that also really worries me from experience is the move of KwaZulu Natal Sports Department from Durban which does not seem to have been completed. Some of the Heads of Department are seldom seen in the “City of Choice”. You see the offices and the desks and possibly one of the directors is around, but from what I can see, though he is doing a good job, he needs more structural support in the “Capital City”. 

I must also mention that on most departmental letterheads I have seen the address 10th Floor Truro House, 17 Victoria Embankment, Esplanade Durban is nearly always mentioned. I would think that the new address: 135 Pietermaritz Street, Pietermaritzburg must now be a priority. 

Coming back to the “City of Choice”, it was quite a few months ago that we heard in the portfolio committee that an athletic track was to be built at Dales Park in Pietermaritzburg. May I ask the MEC when this is likely to “move” ahead? Based on all available surveys, this track is badly needed as KwaZulu Natal is very short of athletic stars. It could also be good for Pietermaritzburg since sporting facilities are not as plentiful as we would like. 

It is very pleasing to hear about the sporting facilities that are being built in the rural areas and elsewhere in the province. Coming back to my pet subject though, I again ask the MEC to persuade the “City of Choice’ council to provide sport facilities that the capital of KwaZulu Natal can be proud of. There are councillors who are strongly supportive of sports, but I think Mr MEC you will have to give them a helping hand. 

To hire a community sports centre in our “sporting city” for development purposes, you have to pay R140 an hour or R2000 a day. In Tongaat, by contrast, it is R20 an hour and until recently it was R15. In Benoni in Gauteng, it is R50 and it has only recently been put up, and I can assure you this is causing great stirs at community level. 

Coming back to Pietermaritzburg, due to lack of facilities a number of the sports only practice once a week. Are you likely to produce top players through this? Others pay heavy rental fees and have no funds for development.

One of the amateur junior soccer clubs which trains in the city centre and has their own training facilities, which include lights, has just advertised that it has over 300 members and has no room for more players. Could not SAFA and the council get together and provide another facility which could also have lighting. Many other children, who would also like to play soccer, could be catered for. 

When a member comes to Parliament, he or she is aware that it might only be for five years and during that time he or she wants to achieve something tangible. In my case, I would like to see a sports academy in action, before time is up so to speak.

I was very happy recently to be part of organising a training camp which will take place before the KwaZulu Natal games squad departs for the SA Games Championships. This is a good start, Mr MEC, and I appeal to you: please commit yourself, give our players of the future a chance to become superstars. 

Let us start this academy or you could call it a sports weekend training camp, even if it operates only once a month. Let us get the leaders in all sports together with the top coaches and put them through tough training sessions. Mr MEC, you previously said you would think about it and I am now urging you. It is time for action. Are you going to assist our leading plhe happy side, the IFP says a very big “thank you” to those in charge for allowing us, non-DSTV watchers, to be able to see South African soccer. On behalf of all those rural people who sit around in groups watching their favourite teams - the Chiefs, the Pirates and Sundowns - I say “thank you”. It would have certainly been a disaster if I was not able to see the Pirates winning the league. 

Finally, with regard to the SA Games which will be taking place in Bloemfontein in late September, I would like to compliment Mr Skhosana and Mr Dlodlo, in my opinion the “strong men” of the department, for the first class job they are doing. They are certainly trying their utmost to make sure KwaZulu Natal comes out tops at the games. One can only say: “Keep up the good work!” 

I thank you. 

Contact: Eddie Coleman, 082 842 2881