Mwiya renews transformation push
Amidst the continued fallout around a public spat involving former Springbok Ashwin Willemse, outspoken sports administrator Freddy Mwiya has renewed his push to transform key Namibian sporting codes.
Namibia Sports Commission chief administrator Freddy Mwiya says key Namibian sport codes must embrace the transformation agenda with renewed vigour.
This follows a recent drama in South Africa which saw former Springbok player and SuperSport pundit Ashwin Willemse accusing his two white colleagues Nick Mallett and Naas Botha, both apartheid-era Boks, of undermining and labelling “a quota player”.
This Willemse, said, when he walked off the SuperSport set during a live broadcast, was despite his achievements.
Willemse, Mallet and Botha were busy with a post-match analysis of the Super Rugby game between the Lions and the Brumbies when the incident occurred this past Saturday.
He spoke out and refused to be patronised by two individuals, who he said played in the apartheid/segregation era, which favoured white players and shunned blacks.
The incident has caused a stir amongst local sportsmen and women, as well as sport analysts and commentators.
Mwiya said Namibia has no quota policy, but the NSC tries to ensure that equal opportunities are created for all players through checking the selection process of federations and clubs, and making sure there are no discriminatory acts.
The sports administrator singled out rugby and said new appointments in the structures are visionary, and there are visible developments in terms of transformation.
He, however, added they are in the process of sending a consultant to verify the activities happening within Cricket Namibia, as they have been receiving many complaints regarding its selection process.
Mwiya also noted that as much as development is key, one should also be aware of the fact that certain people are not interested in taking part in some sports and cannot be forced to do so.
Namibia Rugby Union (NRU) president Corrie Mensah said there are two cornerstones to transformation - training and development.
“Transformation in Namibia is a big challenge. There is a decline of rugby at school level. Two years ago we had 114 school clubs. Now we have 79.
“Women's rugby had five clubs, now we only have two and they have not even played competitively for years. We are not in a good place, even with our sevens rugby teams,” he elaborated.
Mensah added he is focused on restructuring and putting certain things in place to ensure that nothing negative happens while he holds office.
SA Rugby released a statement on Monday in response to Willemse's walkout.
“We were as surprised and concerned as the rest of the rugby community by Saturday evening's incident on SuperSport.
“It would not be fair to make snap judgements.
“However, something was clearly amiss and it reflected poorly on rugby. This is a SuperSport matter and we have asked to be kept informed on the process of the investigation.”
Yesterday, SuperSport released a statement in which Willemse said he had robust discussions in which he aired his views and he appreciates the process undertaken to address the issue resulting in his walk-off. The sports channel assured viewers the issue was not racially motivated.
-Additional info by Sport24
LIMBA MUPETAMI
CAPTION
This follows a recent drama in South Africa which saw former Springbok player and SuperSport pundit Ashwin Willemse accusing his two white colleagues Nick Mallett and Naas Botha, both apartheid-era Boks, of undermining and labelling “a quota player”.
This Willemse, said, when he walked off the SuperSport set during a live broadcast, was despite his achievements.
Willemse, Mallet and Botha were busy with a post-match analysis of the Super Rugby game between the Lions and the Brumbies when the incident occurred this past Saturday.
He spoke out and refused to be patronised by two individuals, who he said played in the apartheid/segregation era, which favoured white players and shunned blacks.
The incident has caused a stir amongst local sportsmen and women, as well as sport analysts and commentators.
Mwiya said Namibia has no quota policy, but the NSC tries to ensure that equal opportunities are created for all players through checking the selection process of federations and clubs, and making sure there are no discriminatory acts.
The sports administrator singled out rugby and said new appointments in the structures are visionary, and there are visible developments in terms of transformation.
He, however, added they are in the process of sending a consultant to verify the activities happening within Cricket Namibia, as they have been receiving many complaints regarding its selection process.
Mwiya also noted that as much as development is key, one should also be aware of the fact that certain people are not interested in taking part in some sports and cannot be forced to do so.
Namibia Rugby Union (NRU) president Corrie Mensah said there are two cornerstones to transformation - training and development.
“Transformation in Namibia is a big challenge. There is a decline of rugby at school level. Two years ago we had 114 school clubs. Now we have 79.
“Women's rugby had five clubs, now we only have two and they have not even played competitively for years. We are not in a good place, even with our sevens rugby teams,” he elaborated.
Mensah added he is focused on restructuring and putting certain things in place to ensure that nothing negative happens while he holds office.
SA Rugby released a statement on Monday in response to Willemse's walkout.
“We were as surprised and concerned as the rest of the rugby community by Saturday evening's incident on SuperSport.
“It would not be fair to make snap judgements.
“However, something was clearly amiss and it reflected poorly on rugby. This is a SuperSport matter and we have asked to be kept informed on the process of the investigation.”
Yesterday, SuperSport released a statement in which Willemse said he had robust discussions in which he aired his views and he appreciates the process undertaken to address the issue resulting in his walk-off. The sports channel assured viewers the issue was not racially motivated.
-Additional info by Sport24
LIMBA MUPETAMI
CAPTION
Comments
Namibian Sun
No comments have been left on this article