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So, Safa is searching for a chief executive officer (CEO) yet again.
In fact, the association has been searching for a CEO since Dennis Mumble left in 2018 – he was the last person to occupy the post on a full-time basis.
It must be said that Mumble left abruptly and most of us still don’t know what really happened behind the scenes. The official line is that his contract was not renewed as he had reached retirement age.
Then came Russell Paul, who acted in the position until last October, when he was poached by the Qatar 2022 World Cup organising committee.
Paul was replaced by Gay Mokoena as an interim measure, and Safa’s vice-president seems to have stabilised things at the association in his five months at the helm. Then he resigned last week.
I thought Mokoena was doing a great job. He was never shy to engage on any subject – however uncomfortable it was – and he was easily accessible to the media. I also believed he was the right man for the job – I still do.
Unfortunately, Mokoena arrived a the time when Safa’s relationship with the PSL had already soured because of the Outsurance referees sponsorship deal. But he tried to make sense of the situation and was always calm in the face of the dispute.
So, what does the future hold?
Safa needs someone of Mokoena’s calibre. I thought they would convince him to take over the reins on a full-time basis, because, under him, the association seemed to be going in the right direction. He came across as a principled man – mind you, football does not want honest people – and he quickly learnt to swim with the sharks.
I don’t think it’s too late to convince him to make a U-turn, but this should only happen if he is given the space to operate freely.
Personally, I forsee Safa president Danny Jordaan going back to his previous position as the CEO – despite his age (he is 68).
There is no doubting his administrative capabilities, which he showcased during South Africa’s two bids to host the World Cup – in 2006 and 2010 – which the country successfully staged in the latter year.
I think, under his administration – he was the CEO at one point – Safa flourished and was successful because of his vision and leadership qualities.
Jordaan’s mistake was that he was too ambitious.
He likes boasting that, under his leadership as the president of Safa, several national teams have qualified for major events. There’s an element of truth in that, but Safa is not just judged by the success of the national teams, but by everything else happening in football in the country – from the amateur ranks all the way to the premiership.
As the president of Safa, Jordaan has short-changed the country big time. His job should be in the office, driving matters there.
He has ambitions of going for a third term, but I have my reservations.
He has often been accused of interfering in administrative matters, and rightfully so, because he has been there for so long that he knows how to run a successful organisation.
He will always have a say in how things should be done, especially when things are not going well. But the downside of this is that no one is going to last in the CEO position if Jordaan is always interfering in the day-to-day running of Safa.
It’s similar to the case of Jomo Sono at Jomo Cosmos. No coach will ever have free rein to run the team as long as Bra J is still there. He played the game, formed the club and coaches the team.
I still wonder how Roy Matthews managed as coach at Cosmos in the 1990s because, since then, no one else has sat in the Ezenkosi dugout.
As the president, Jordaan has been found wanting and I’m sure he would not want to be the one overseeing the death of Safa.
At the rate things are going, he is tarnishing his own good image and we will soon just remember the bad things he has presided over, and not his successes. After all, people tend to forget all the good things that one does, but missteps will tarnish one’s legacy.
This would be my message to Jordaan:
You don’t want to be remembered for Safa’s demise. You did well in your previous life as the chief executive and you should be remembered for that.
Under your watch as president, Safa is now going for its fourth CEO. Hopefully, this time you will get someone who can turn its fortunes around and take the association back to its glory days.
This will happen while you concentrate on giving guidance as the president – not an executive president who is always at the office.
You need to give the new person space to operate and breathe without interference.
- timothy@citypress.co.za
- Follow me on Twitter @TimspiritMolobi
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