‘EP Rugby must be more visible’

New Nelson Mandela Bay mayor Eugene Johnson says EP Rugby and the Elephants Currie Cup professional team must become much more visible in the community to help develop the youth and eradicate gangsterism and drug use.

Johnson was a guest speaker when acting EP Rugby president Maasdorp Cannon unveiled new Elephants Currie Cup coach Dumisani Mhani to the media.

The mayor said rugby had a big role to play in the community and she would like to see an indaba to plot the way forward.

“We have one vision for the city and that is to ensure the lives of our people change for the better,” she said.

“Be it through rugby, service delivery, eradicating crime or economic development.

“Professional rugby has been kept far away from our communities.

“Our sports facilities are vandalised and they are vandalising it more.

“Professional rugby is being seen as there, and the communities are here.

“When I met with the executive earlier I made an appeal and that is to ensure our youth are being empowered and trained.

“We believe a sound mind is in a sound body. For our youth to be an active youth is only when the legends and those that play rugby assist.

“You are the mentors of our youth. You will find a child in the street taking a ball, or some even making a ball out of a lot of plastic bags, and make it in the shape of a rugby ball.

“Then they make as if they play rugby because of the desire in their hearts to one day become professional players.

“The only appeal we want to make to all of you here today because you are one of the stake holders [is to] assist our children and boys to focus on their bodies.

“Many of our children enter into gangsterism and drugs. Rugby, unlike soccer, is not that visible in our communities.

“On a Sunday you can go to Gelvan grounds and soccer is played. We want rugby to be seen as the sport because many years ago all that our children went to watch was rugby.

“In Schauderville, everyone went down to watch the rugby at the Adcock stadium, which is now vandalised.

“Our communities played rugby there and we want to work with you [EP Rugby]. I have an open-door policy and your executive can come any day. I think what we need to do is to have a sports indaba where we can craft a way forward.

“Even if it means we meet with rugby only to craft a way forward to see how your union can assist our youth to becoming the youth we want to see in our communities in the Northern Areas, Colchester, Kariega, Lapland, Kwanobuhle, Zwide and New Brighton.

“Please help us and we will work with you. We are asking that you don’t become a sport of a certain colour. Don’t marginalise communities.

“Embrace everybody, learn from each other and transfer the skills you have over to our young children, so our communities can be freed from crime and gangsterism.

“We know sport can be one of the anchors in economic development. That is why we want you to play a role and we will work with you, and please work with us as well.”