Robyn Louw
George Morris may not be a familiar name to too many racing folks, but he is a highly respected rider, trainer and coach in the USA and is something of a cult figure among equestrian enthusiasts. Mr Morris taught a 4 day clinic in Florida over the festive period which was streamed live on the USEF website.
He may be in his 80’s these days, but there is nothing sedate about him at all. He still rides and he is a ferociously exacting coach, expecting extremely high standards from his students.
One of the points he drove home repeatedly over the course of the four days was the value of attention to detail and ensuring that all the little, seemingly inconsequential things (such as mounting correctly, posture, the position of the foot in the stirrup, keeping the iron at exactly 90 degrees to the saddle, etc) were constantly and rigorously corrected. Horses (and people) thrive on consistency.
It’s what helps us make sense of the world. Inconsistencies in small details leads to confusion and can compromise very large structures entirely. Mr Morris reasons that without a solid foundation of these small details, riders have no hope of tackling larger challenges with any success. Being an international authority and an Olympic coach – I’m not about to question the equestrian equivalent of Chuck Norris !!
NHA AGM
The 132nd meeting of the National Horse Racing Authority kicked off at a little after 14:30 on Monday, 13 January 2014. I have visited Turffontein before, but it was my first visit to the NHA offices and I was suitably impressed by the imposing white building. I felt very Scarlett O’Hara sweeping up the wooden staircase before checking at the reception desk with Cindy.
The corridors are lined with wonderful historic photographs of previous Chairmen, racing prints and other artefacts. However, there wasn’t time to take it all in properly before we were ushered into the conference room to say a few hurried hellos before our new Chairman, Advocate Altus Joubert, welcomed everyone to the meeting.
There were a few administrative issues to deal with, but we were informed that we had enough attendees to form a quorum (it seemed a pretty fair turnout overall in fact) and that a number of proxies had been tendered for some of the discussion items. These proxies had been checked and validated by Mr Pillay and a list was made available for distribution.
First Impressions Count
Advocate Brett Maselle is something of a stickler for detail and seems to know the NHA rules and Constitution backwards and informed the assembly that the Constitution dictates that each member is only permitted to present a maximum number of 20 proxy votes.
The agenda listed close on 200 proxies submitted. I don’t think it would be unfair to say a certain amount of water has flowed under the bridge which seems to colour sometimes entirely unrelated issues (and occasionally, individuals), but while the information appeared to be offered in a factual manner, it could also reasonably be construed as an early shot across the bows.
I was interested to see how it would be received. With it being Adv Joubert’s first AGM in the Chairman’s seat, his reaction would do a great deal to inform the assembly about his management style and set the tone for his tenure. I’m pleased to say that the matter was discussed and debated at some length, with the Chairman taking input from the floor before offering his thoughts and conclusions on the matter.
It is apparently unprecedented for the NHA to receive such a large number of proxies (so well done to everyone who contributed), so much so that the 20 limit has never been a consideration before. The NHA has in the past received criticism for being ‘toothless’, so it was interesting to see the Chair make what was possibly an unpopular decision in some quarters.
He explained his reasoning and then stuck firmly to his guns (and the NHA Constitution) and said he would present what he felt to be a representative number of 20 votes. With that settled, we moved on to the next order of business, which was to approve the minutes of the 2013 AGM. Previous NHA Chair Dr Len Konar was in attendance and made some editorial amendments to the minutes as well as adding some interesting and useful contributions regarding issues of corporate governance (his area of speciality).
It was a similar scenario when it came to considering the Chairman’s report and the audited Financial Statements. I wouldn’t ordinarily consider the finer points of IFAC rules, corporate governance and best practice riveting entertainment, but these things do exist for a reason and again, Dr Konar offered some interesting insights and opinions which were received with interest and the Report and Financials were duly signed off.
Discussion items
The additional agenda items were the subject of lively discussion. While some parties felt that the NHA AGM was not the correct forum for these issues to be debated, I was encouraged by the Chairman’s decision to do so anyway, as he felt that the points were all inter-related and therefore valid.
The issue of the NHA’s application to become a statutory body was discussed at length, not least of all because of the potential repercussions on our relationship with Zimbabwean racing. The issue of becoming a statutory body is obviously a complicated and intricate one, but it seems that the NHA may not have a great deal of choice in the matter.
Concerns were voiced from the floor as to why there had been so little communication on the matter. The Chair explained that the process was still in the preliminary stages and that there was not a great deal to report as yet. While it is clear that there will be challenges, all parties appear committed to maintaining the Zimbabwean ties and feel that any problems that may arise will not prove insurmountable.
Parliament
Messrs Pillay and Bruss reported on their presentations to Parliament on the process of transformation within in the industry. Robin Bruss feels that the greatest barrier to transformation in racing may well be the government itself and that a review of the taxation imposed on racing and gambling is necessary.
On a positive note, he reported that the government is interested in the racing industry and may well be amendable to amending taxation levels, but on the condition that racing fulfils its transformation obligations. So it seems there may be work and potential reward in equal measure.
Admission & Badges
With regard to the submission by Mr Steve Reid, arguments were heard from both sides. It seems there may have been a miscommunication and / or misunderstanding as to who exactly controls admission in ‘Phumelela country’, and of course there is the added complication that there are different rules for Gold Circle courses.
Graeme Hawkins objected to Mr Reid’s suggestion that NHA members should be granted access to all racecourses at all times, stating that in KZN the only meetings affected were the July and Gold Cup days in which the connections of all runners were issued with 3 entry tickets and that there were also special dispensations for GC members.
Larry Wainstein confirmed that the issues surrounding the recent Queen’s Plate arose because of pre-existing agreements with the day’s sponsors that were beyond his control. Phumelela stated a wish for all owners to be RA members to make it easier to deal with one representative body than lots of individual owners, but it seems that the rights and correct channels of communication for non RA members merits more thought.
Funding / Finance Issues
Mr Matthyse’s proposals centred on alternate income mechanisms (redirecting Bookmakers’ levies and the reallocation of unclaimed dividends) to allow the NHA a bit more distance from the Operator. Adv Joubert told the assembly that it is in everyone (including the Operators and shareholders) interests to have a strong and functional regulator.
Despite the problems that might arise from the Operators being the main source of financial support, he felt there had never been any undue pressure in this regard and that the NHA Board was robust enough to eliminate any such elements that might arise.
In fact, the Operators frequently volunteer to foot after budget expenses to benefit the NHA, but it seems that there are plans to review the structures for how the NHA is currently funded, with seeking Government funding a consideration. The general consensus was that redirecting income streams would impact the Operators’ bottom line and therefore affect stakes. The Operators concurred that they felt the proposed model would render racing unsustainable.
There was a general discussion as to what the core functions of the NHA are and should be. Obviously this has evolved significantly and the Chair explained that while the NHA tries to assist across a wide spectrum, they were looking at alternate mechanisms such as assistance from the RA to deal with matters such as non-payment (although this model is one of several that are under consideration).
Entrenched seats
Mr Kyriacou voiced his concern that allowing entrenched seats on the NHA Board opened the door for parties to pursue their own agendas, listing a number of incidents which could be construed as furthering the interests of individual bodies, rather than the interests of racing as a whole. Adv Joubert acknowledged that while the prospect of abuse certainly exists, the board was very alive to this issue and careful to guard against it. He also felt that the overall benefits offered by the diverse interest groups outweighed the risks.
Dr Konar lent his support to this view stating that a board needs a range of skills and that entrenched positions are necessary to provide the requisite skills from a corporate governance point of view. With regard to amending the constitution to allow an additional Board member from Kenilworth Racing, there were opinions that with the crossover in management, Kenilworth was already represented via the Phumelela seat.
Mr du Plessis explained that Kenilworth Racing had been contributing significantly towards the funding of the NHA and felt that they deserved separate representation. Dr Konar again stepped in to explain that there were sound practical reasons for limiting the number of people on a Board and that there were alternatives available to simply increasing the number of board members, but there were counter-arguments that the size of a board was irrelevant as long as there was a strong Chairman.
Special AGM
The assembly adjourned for a brief recess and the SGM commended at 17:20. The addition of an extra board member could only be facilitated by an amendment to the Constitution, and any constitutional changes need to be done by Special AGM. Having weighed the matter, Adv Joubert presented his proxies, the rest of the attendees voted by show of hands and the motion for the addition of a Board member was approved by a 2/3 majority.
Overall impression
It was my first AGM and I’m very glad I went. I felt that our Chairman showed remarkable fairness and dedication in getting to the bottom of the issues raised and ironing out those thorny details. While it is never easy being criticised – no matter how constructively – what is often overlooked is that delivering criticism is difficult too. It was hugely encouraging to see all parties attempting to formulate concerns and queries politely and for the relevant parties to answer in a similar vein.
There was a lot of interesting and useful information shared and exchanged, concerns were (for the most part) voiced and heard in an open and receptive manner and ground was conceded and recovered by all sides. In fact, things felt downright cooperative and I’d venture to say that some real progress was made. I left feeling rather proud of being able to participate and contribute.
– Robyn Louw
