Times Of Swaziland: NUNES STUN BERGER, HERMAN IN SWIMMING ELECTIONS

NUNES STUN BERGER, HERMAN IN SWIMMING ELECTIONS
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Nimrod Hlophe on 29/09/2024 15:02:00


EZULWINI – Splash Swimming Club’s Pedro Nunes is the new president of the
Eswatini Swimming Association (ESA).
Nunes won this seat during the dramatic ESA elections following the elective
Annual General Assembly (AGM) held at Sibane Sami Hotel yesterday. He secured 13
out of 24 votes, outclassing two former presidents who were favourites for this
hot seat. The runner-up was Pelicans Swimming Club’s Berger Nxumalo, who
garnered seven votes. Nxumalo had served the association for six years before
resigning in 2020 due to a conflict of interest.
This was after being appointed to serve on the former Eswatini Sport and
Recreation Council (ESRC) board. Meanwhile, former president Herman Jele managed
to collect five votes. Jele stepped down from his position last year and was
replaced by Welcome Nhlabatsi. Nhlabatsi had a short stint as acting president
before being suspended by the executive on grounds of misconduct. Mark Hoare
then took over and handed the baton to Nunes yesterday.
However, leading up to the ballot, there was an intense moment with SwimLab,
expressing dissatisfaction, alleging some irregularities leading to the
elections. The team did not understand how Gaetan Ning was removed from the
president position, as he was listed among the nominees circulated on September
21. Meanwhile, the Electoral Officer (EO) Mlondzi Nsibandze stated at the start
of the election process that there were two defective nominations. These were
SwimLab’s Leslee and Ning, who were nominated with undefined positions,
contrary to the ESA Constitution.
To note, the new president promised to tackle issues of transparency and
accountability, as highlighted by the auditors. He further pledged to address
some of the issues raised on the day, such as constitutional amendments, pending
2022/23 financial reports, and the adoption of previous reports within three
months. Notable is that the 2023/24 financials were deferred for a discussion on
another day, after they were presented. Grant Thornton Auditors said there were
no issues with them.
Meanwhile, former Vice President Doreen Mdluli retained her position, while
Meluleki ‘Sluga’ Simelane, former Treasurer Bongiwe Dlamini, Mark Hoare, and
Secretary General (SG), Nozipho Mahlalela retained their positions on the
Executive board as additional members. The sixth member is Dumile Magongo. From
these members, the executive is expected to meet and appoint the SG and
Treasurer.