Newlands stadium sale challenged in South African court
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on IOL
The African Restoration Alliance has approached the Western Cape High Court to challenge the administration of the Western Province rugby union and try to block the sale of Newlands stadium. The judgment has been reserved, reports South African media outlet IOL.
The African Restoration Alliance (ARA), a South African political party, has approached the Western Cape High Court to challenge the placing under administration of the Western Province Rugby Football Union and try to block the sale of the Newlands rugby stadium complex. The party is asking for the South African Rugby Union (SARU) decision to be declared unlawful and for an interim interdict to prevent any transfer of the site.
ARA leader Jerome Swarts says amateur rugby players and supporters were excluded from decisions concerning the stadium. He is calling for Newlands to be returned to local communities and remain accessible to the public. The High Court judgment has been reserved.
In its response, SARU says it placed the Western Province federation under administration because of management problems. It cites former president Zelt Marais, who allegedly acknowledged administrative difficulties and short-term financial problems, while disputing the existence of sufficient legal grounds for the intervention. SARU also considers ARA’s claims about the administration’s consequences for rugby development in the province to be vague and speculative.
