While sharing his words of appreciation for his official election as a member of the PSL National Executive Committee, Richards Bay chairman, Sifiso Biyela further shared his thoughts on PSL chairman, Irvin Khoza’s R2-million gift to Dr. Kaizer Motaung.
Gathered at the Sandton Convention Centre, The National Soccer League (NSL) hosted a Quadrennial meeting on Wednesday, where elections of the PSL’s new executive committee were successfully conducted.
Elected alongside experienced members in the likes of Dr Khoza, Dr Motaung, and Mato Madlala, Bay chairman, Biyela was elected for the first time to form part of South African club football’s most prestigious governing body which will see him serve for the next four years.
Brimming in elation, the Natal Rich Boy’s boss expressed his gratitude to the voting member clubs for the confidence shown in him, while giving a concise explanation of his responsibilities as a new EXCO member.
“Maybe I should start by thanking the member clubs for the confidence shown to us. We really appreciate it, and we are humbled by the support they have shown to us. Maybe you heard the chairman earlier on, we are not here to change things, but we are here to learn from them and come up with new ideas, if necessary,” explained Biyela.
Multiple club owners have in recent years experienced pressing financial difficulties in the running of clubs. Mostly attributed to the lack of funding and the scarcity of good sponsorship deals, this has led to many clubs having to sell their statuses to other teams from lower-ranked leagues.
Having recently secured a new major sponsorship deal for his club; the Bay chairman emphasized the significance of the attraction of club sponsors as one of the league’s biggest priorities in the new term.
“Football is the number one sport in our country so one of the things that we have to make a point is to sell football to the prospective sponsors for them to a knowledge the fact that we need assistance and the fact that football is the number one sport,” revealed Biyela.
Chiefs chairman, Dr Motaung celebrated his 80th birthday last month. In celebration of one of the PSL’s founding members, league chair, Khoza presented his long-standing colleague with a whopping R2 million as a token of appreciation for his contributions to South African football.
The new EXCO member, otherwise known as ‘Jomo’, insisted that Chiefs boss was deserving of the gift regardless of where the funds were drawn from.
“Well, it is not for me, I can’t say where is that money coming from but what I know is that even if it comes from the league, he has served the league very well. He is one of the founding members of the league. Looking at the time that he has spent with the league since its inception.”
The Empangeni-born businessman further lauded Chincha Guluva’s contributions, asserting that they are beyond monetary value and appreciating that has been honored while he is still alive.
“So really there is no amount of money that can match his contribution, his efforts in changing the lives of the footballers in this country. So, he deserves it, and we appreciate the gesture by the chairman to honor him while he’s still alive,” he asserted.
Set to serve as the PSL’s highest authoritative body for the next four years, the full executive committee consists of a chairman, Dr. Khoza, Dr. Motaung, Madlala, Tim Sukazi (TS Galaxy), Dr. Joice Simelane (Mamelodi Sundowns), Stanley Mathews (SuperSport Utd), Johny Mogaladi (Polokwane City) and Sifiso Biyela.