Former ICC president Ray Mali has been appointed the interim administrator of the Gauteng Cricket Board as part of an effort on the part of Cricket South Africa to resolve the dispute among members of the board. CSA had set up a fact-finding commission to investigate the dispute and among its recommendations was the establishment of an interim structure, comprising an independent administrator who will be assisted by an advisory panel.
Mali will head a nine-member interim board of elected representatives. They are Anne Vilas, Dan Pehla, Doug Nielson, Dr Mohammed Moosajee, Faisel Salie, Hussain Manack, Mandla Tisani and Patrick Moroney. Another position on the board has been reserved for a representative from Soweto, and elections are due in September.
The crisis within the GCB can be traced to its dispute with CSA over the running of the IPL in South Africa in 2009. The differences with CSA were resolved when it was agreed - following a mediation process involving South Africa's Ministry of Sport - that the GCB would elect a new board from the province's "advantaged and disadvantaged clubs," the appointment of a Change Management Committee and the drafting of a new constitution.
The interim board will have the responsibility of reviewing GCB's constitution, the operational procedures of the board and appointing a chief executive officer.