SAFA CEO Tebogo Motlanthe defends understaffed departments

Speaking to the media last week, SAFA Chief Executive Officer Tebogo Motlanthe insisted this is no crisis as he holds a different view on the matter.

SABC Sport has gathered that the all-important competitions office at SAFA headquarters operates with only two administrators, who have to deal with 52 regions and 341 Local Football Associations.

On top of this, there are nine provincial leagues for both men and women, which all culminate in the national play-offs for promotions to the Motsepe Foundation Championship and the Hollywoodbets Super League – all of which is run by the two people in the office.

“The question about the competitions office is not correct, we have nine provincial secretaries and three people at the national office, and those are the people who are running competitions,” argued Motlanthe.

Furthermore, school’s football, which many people want prioritised – including CAF President Patrice Motsepe and newly-appointed Minister of Sports Zizi Kodwa – and repurposed into viable Wednesday leagues and not just knockout competitions, is non-existent in the present organogram.

Under the current arrangement, school’s football falls under the competitions office, while SABC Sport understands that there has previously only been a school’s football consultant who would only be called on as and when needed.

But Motlanthe is adamant the two officials in the competitions office are enough to service the needs and activities of the organization, working with the nine provincial structures. He also revealed some mooted changes in schools football. 

“Of course, for schools we have a position which we will be filing soon to get someone running the schools programme,” he added.

“All competitions are run in the provinces, with the nine provincial secretaries running those leagues in the provinces and regions. The schools programme is also going to fall under them.” 

Motlanthe further explained that all competitions are run in the provinces and the national office merely coordinates, but sources the national broadcaster has reached out to, have complained about the lack of capacity in the national office.

“Everything starts there on the ground, head office is there just to coordinate and oversee the processes, but you have nine people whose responsibilities are to run competitions there [in the provinces],” he insisted.

“We must just coordinate them well, so that we must get from Eastern Cape, what we get in Limpopo and get similar things from all the provinces.

“And of course, we are going to engage with members, on the organogram itself. If there’s a need to add, we will add.”

Motlanthe also said the model they are following is aimed towards empowering people on the ground, at provincial and regional level to be in charge of the programmes and not baby sitted by the head office.