DRUG FREE SPORT AMENDMENT BILL: PROCESS ANOMOLY SURFACES

DRUG FREE SPORT AMENDMENT BILL: PROCESS ANOMOLY SURFACES

• 27 November 2023
• Sport, Arts & Culture
• SA Legal Academy

The South African Institute for Drug-free Sport (SAIDS) Amendment Bill has been tabled in Parliament – almost eight weeks after being approved by Cabinet at a special meeting on 4 October 2023.

Its purpose is to align the Act with a World Anti-doping Agency (WADA) code in place since 2021.

According to the media statement on a later Cabinet meeting in which a section on the ‘special meeting’ was included, ‘Cabinet considered and approved the processing of amendments to the South African Institute for Drug-Free Sport Amendment Act … to ensure alignment and compliance with the WADA code’. This after government’s failure to meet the 14 October 2023 deadline for making the necessary legislative changes – casting a shadow over Springbok triumphs during the Rugby World Cup tournament in France.

It has since come to light that, on 9 November 2023 – more than five weeks after the Bill was ‘considered and approved’ by Cabinet – the SAIDS posted a notice on its website announcing a two-week window for public comments on the Bill’s contents.

Was that part of whatever Cabinet meant when it approved the ‘processing’ of amendments to the Act? If so, will any input received by the SAIDS be factored into the analysis of submissions made during parliamentary hearings on the Bill? Would that be procedurally sound? If not, what was the point in calling for public comments on a piece of draft legislation already approved for ‘processing’ in Parliament (which is what Cabinet approval usually means)?

Clarity is needed.

• Cabinet media statement
• SAIDS call for comments
• WADA code

Published by SA Legal Academy Policy Watch

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