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Saru election not predictable
27/03/2008 07:47 - (SA)
Johannesburg - There is little as unpredictable as a rugby election - and Friday's election of, inter alia, the South African Rugby Union's president, will be no different.
Incumbent Oregon Hoskins is being opposed by current deputy president Mike Stofile, in a winner-takes-all election, with the loser out of the Saru structures.
Both have declined to be nominated as deputy in a race that has at times bordered on the personal and has throughout been fairly acrimonious.
Traditionally a number of unions, or delegates of the unions, do not vote for the candidates they have pledged their support to. It is this fact that makes it a lottery to predict the next president of Saru.
Hoskins runs on the ticket of continuity in South African rugby, and feels his experience over the past term will be to his advantage during the next term. Financial stability and the increase of financial opportunities are among his aims.
Stofile feels there is a lack of leadership in the organisation and is of the opinion he can solve this shortcoming.
He does not want to change much, but says he wants to implement what has been decided should be done. Both the candidates have been campaigning in the press and have been hard at work in talking to the 14 provincial unions.
Lucrative financial carrot
The anomaly of the selection process is each of the 14 unions has an equal number of votes - in other words, a small union like, say, the Griffons and a powerhouse union such as KwaZulu-Natal, have exactly the same say in the election of the country's office bearers.
And if the past is anything to go by, the election result could depend on which one of the two candidates can offer the smaller unions the most lucrative financial carrot.
All past elections have been determined by the smaller unions' vote. There are 45 votes to be cast: three for each of the 14 unions, plus the votes of the president, deputy president and vice-president.
The nominations for the three positions of president, deputy president and vice-president on Friday are: President: Oregan Hoskins, Mike Stofile.
Deputy president: Tobie Titus (Western Province), Dr Jan Marais (Griffons), Boet Fick (Blue Bulls), Sampie Pienaar (Golden Lions), Mark Alexander (Golden Lions)
Vice president: Boet Fick (Blue Bulls), Rautie Rautenbach (Valke), Pat de Silva (Eastern Province), Dr Jan Marais (Griffons), Sampie Pienaar (Golden Lions) Mark Alexander.
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