Cricket SA fails to meet own deadline to release findings on investigation on suspended CEO Moroe

The embattled Cricket South Africa (CSA) board has failed to meet its own deadline to release the findings and recommendations from a forensic investigation on suspended chief executive Thabang Moroe by June 30.

Moroe was suspended by phone by president Chris Nenzani on December 5 over “allegations of misconduct” and is yet to have a consultation with the Fundudzi Forensic Services investigators appointed by CSA on March 6.

Briefing the portfolio committee on sport‚ Arts and Culture on June 19 in Parliament on CSA’s annual performance report and a turn-around strategy‚ Nenzani told the august house that the “forensic auditors are in the process of finalising other investigations with a target date of 30 June 2020 for issuing the draft report for comments”.

Nenzani committed to the June 30 deadline again a week ago when he told TimesLIVE that “I remain confident that we will meet the June 30 deadline I set which I outlined at the media briefing you attended last week (June 16)”.

Nenzani added last week that “it is our intention to make the key parts of the forensic audit public knowledge and this will follow due process once we have the full report”.

But after the CSA board met on Monday to consider the first part of the forensic investigation report‚ Nenzani offered an excuse as CSA failed to make any meaningful pronouncements.

Nenzani said the board will meet again on Friday and will take necessary actions from findings and recommendations of Fundudzi Forensic Services.

The embattled organisation said there has been a slight delay in the delivery of the final report. It said it anticipates receiving the final report during the course of next week.

“I would like to stress that the board is treating this matter with urgency and is committed to bring it to immediate conclusion‚” said Nenzani.

The outgoing CSA president had previously said the organisation will be able to act on the suspended CEO Moroe once it received the first part of the forensic investigation.

“We will certainly be able to act on the issue of the suspended Chief Executive on the basis of the first report‚” concluded Nenzani.

The suspended Moroe last week accused the CSA delegation of allegedly misleading parliament during its presentation.

In a letter addressed to the chairperson of the portfolio committee on sport‚ Arts and Culture Beauty Dlulani last week‚ Moroe detailed how the CSA delegation allegedly misrepresented the truth when it told the committee that “investigations relating to Moroe have been completed”.

The CSA delegation‚ among others‚ also told the committee “the forensic auditors were not able to consult with Moroe regardless of various attempts to do so”.

Acting on behalf of Moroe‚ Sharlyn Geza of Motsoeneng Bill Attorneys (MBA) wrote to the committee and said CSA’s assertion that the forensic investigation into the suspended CEO is complete was “disingenuous”.

Geza said that as far as her client is concerned the forensic investigation is still “ongoing”.