Khompela and his blunderbuss of hot gas

As if we don't have enough politicians making fools of themselves (how's the shower-cap fitting you, Jacob?), another prime specimen wades into the bullring: Butana Khomphela, chairperson of South Africa's Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Sport, has threatened to withhold the passports of the South African Springbok Rugby team ahead of the World Cup in France if the team does not show sufficient "transformation".

Not only is this a violation of the South African Constitution, which states succinctly in Chapter 2, Section 21.4, "Every citizen has the right to a passport...", but it opens up a whole new can of worms.

Race has always been a sensitive issue in RSA, so let me first set a few tent-pegs straight: I find it intellectually insulting that one should keep making the distinction between "players of colour" and "the rest". I can't wait for the day where in the words of ol' Marty King, one could just look at the character of the man, rather than the colour of his hide. Why should this lovely country walk boldly into the future staring directly backwards?

However, since Khomphela's brought it up, one might as well take it on his terms -- and his obtuse logic. He insists that there should be at least 6 "players of colour" in the world cup squad:

This destroys any concept of competitive professional sport. When any team runs out against another, they expect to play against the best players the opposing country/club can bring to bear. They don't want to play against the most "politically correct" team, or the team that has best lined the pockets of the pertinent politician. Why bother playing, it will only have token significance.

At its essence, it seems that Khomphela requires the team to be representative of the entire South African demographic. Why then does he discriminate against women? And the handicapped? If he wants it to be representative, there should be at least 1 blind person, 7 1/2 females and 3 pets in the Springbok team! Why should race be the deciding factor here?

Obviously excelling in a certain sport is rooted in that which is embraced by a culture -- and the skills which are subsequently nurtured from childhood. There will always be an inconsistency while certain cultures favour certain sports. You're more likely to find an expert in martial arts than a cricket player in the orient. As cultures amalgamate, this will slowly be reflected in the national teams – which is exactly what’s happening. How pretentious of Government to set the benchmark for this amalgamation.

The inconsistency of this application is immediately visible if one looks at a sport which is predominantly enjoyed by "players of colour"; soccer being a case in point. When watching the PSL, I double take when I see a "player of non-colour (pah!)" on the field. One possible reason for such a meager representation is ngoba bayizinkomo! Generally in Africa, white man can't jump -- nor kick the soccer ball. Maybe there simply aren't that many who can -- and want to -- compete at such a level of the game.

So why then aren't the PSL clubs forced to implement a quota system for "players of non-colour"? Why stop at PSL? All sports -- from absailing to figure-skating to zookeeping -- should have quotas implemented. The rest of the world might stop laughing by 2020.

It is no wonder the sport talent is leaving South Africa in droves.