Cape Town - Minister of Sport and Recreation Makhenkesi Stofile said his department will work tirelessly to deracialise sports in South Africa as part of transformation and building social cohesion.
Tabling his department's Budget Vote in Parliament on Wednesday, Minister Stofile said South Africa belonged to "all who live in it, black or white; rich or poor and sport is no sacred cow in this respect".
"We cannot let the issue of unequal access to opportunities to chance or the market forces. If we did, sport will divide, not unite South Africa. We have been there before.
"On the subject of deracialisation and transformation, some will accuse us of repeating ourselves. We may even sound pedantic. Yes, we are all the above things for effect," he said.
He added that as government attempts to deracialise and transform sports, the public must have clarity of mind as to whether the country sticks to professionalism or economism.
"What I mean here is that we cannot at the expense of being professional and having our sport contributes positively towards the national priorities, allow the wealthy few to determine the direction of sport at the expense of our people.
"Therefore as other agencies join us in partnership, we hope they will do so to further expand on the realisation of national priorities instead of coming with a 'you take it or leave it' attitude," Minister Stofile.
He said for some, this would be a threat to their privileges and for others it will be a window of hope, adding that transformation is a non-negotiable.
"This is why school sport and community clubs are so important for us. This is why broad participation is important.
"The broader the base or catchments, the stronger the apex of the development triangle. Together with our partners, we will endeavor to intensify the identification and nurturing of talent," he said.
