THE N.Z.A.A.A.

Evening Post, Volume CXXVIII, Issue 25, 29 July 1939, Page 10

THE N.Z.A.A.A.

ANNUAL MEETING

OFFICE OF PRESIDENT"

CHANGES ADVOCATED

Proposals are being discussed m Wellington and other centres which, if put into operation, will result in administration changes in the New Zealand Amateur Athletic Association. The -first proposal is to abandon the conference of centre delegates held each year at the time and at the place of the national track and field championships, and in substitution to provide for delegates from the centres attending the annual meeting of the N.Z.A.A.A. with full voting power. The other suggested alteration relates to the presidency of the association, th<i proposal in this connection being that the office of president shall be held by the president from time to time of each affiliated centre in rotation in the order that the New Zealand track and field championships are held. These proposals were embodied in remits which were considered and adopted at the last conference of centre delegates, held in Napier in March at the time of the national championships. In due course they were submitted to the N.Z.A.A.A. Council from the conference as recommendations, the conference not having power to make decisions binding the council. A committee was appointed by the council to consider these recommendations and this committee brought down a report, which subsequently was circulated to the centres for their consideration. In this way the proposals have been kept very much alive and it is evident that among centre delegates there is a desire that they should not be dropped. COUNCIL'S ATTITUDE. With regard to the first proposal, advocating the abandonment of the conference of centre delegates the council's committee reported that as the remit stands and in view of certain differences of opinion expressed at the conference it was impossible to • say just what the centres really want. It contended that, in so far as the remit was based on the assumption that the council practically ignored the decisions of the conference, it was based on a false assumption and would appear to be unnecessary. Apart from that, it appeared doubtful whether centres v\'ould consistently send to the' annual meeting delegates fully seized of the centres' points of view and with the knowledge and the authority to speak for the centres. Another point was that the conference of centres, being held at the end of the track season, afforded greater time to the council to take such action on the remits as might appear necessary or desirable than would be so in the case of masters dealt with at the annual meeting of the association held near the commencement of the track season. The Wellington centre appointed a sub-committee to consider the findings of the council's committee, and its opinion is that, provided the other centres are prepared to pay the expenses of their delegates so that they are represented by men fully conversant with the views of their committees, the Wellington centre should support the remit. "We are of the opinion, however," the report continued, "that the necessary notice of motion to alter the council's rules should come from one of the other centres." If delegates attended the an- | nual meeting of the council with full voting power, the Wellington subcommittee's opinion is that any motion | carried at the meeting, provided that j due notice had been given in accordance with clause 8 (4) of the New Zealand Handbook, would be as binding as any other motion carried by the council in full meeting. The council would not have to reconsider any such motions as it did remits carried at the j conference of centres, and as suggested by the council's committee in its report. AUCKLAND PROPOSALS. The Auckland centre has also re- : considered the position and has advised that it will give notice to the council of several motions, involving the abandonment of the conference of centres, and to provide for the governing body iof the N.Z.A.A.A-., consisting of a council comprising a president and an cxci cutive of eight members, and two dele- | gates representing each centre, the executive of eight and also the president to be elected by postal ballot by the centres at least 14 days before the annual general meeting of the associaj tion. It is proposed that 20 per cent, of j the net profits of the national championships each year be devoted towards defraying the travelling expenses to Wellington of the delegates representing each centre, the balance of the net profits to be divided equally between the council and the centre conducting the championship meeting The comment of the Wellington centre sub-committee on the Auckland proposal is that it considers that the remits as passed at the confei'ence of centres were quite satisfactory, whereas in the Wellington sub-committee's opinion the changes in the method of electing the executive of the council as submitted by Auckland are cumbersome and would not have any material advantage In their operation. At present the position is that the council members are elected by the six centres, each being represented by two men resident in Wellington, and one oi them, Mr. R. W. McVilly, a Wellington delegate, is also the president of the association, a position he has occupied for a long term. These representatives of the centres, with the exception that Mr. A. C. Kitto, president of the Wellington centre, has made a practice of j | attending as one of the vice-presidents i jof the N.Z.A.A.A., usually comprise the j personnel present at the association's j annual meeting. | OFFICE OF PRESIDENT. i Returning to the proposal that the j office of president of the association | | shall be held in rotation by the presidents of the centres, the council's committee reported that the effect of the alteration would be that the president would be largely a figurehead, except possibly when the office was held by the president of the Wellington centre. It seemed desirable, the committee added, that the president should be closely in touch with the work of the council and the sport, and able to speak authoritatively on behalf of the i sport. That position now obtained; iti could hardly be the case if the sug-i gested alteration was brought into effect. The motive behind the sug-: gestion apparently was that it would afford an opportunity of doing honour! to men outside Wellington who had given yeoman service to the sport, but. in the opinion of the committee, election to honorary life membership would be a greater honour than the mere holding of the presidency for one year. ,

The Wellington sub-committee's comment on this is that the reasons set forth by the council's committee should not be sufficient to cause the centre to withdraw its support o*f the remit. It also expresses the opinion that as the centre's delegates to the conference of centres at Napier took an active part in the forming of the remit

as finally passed, the centre could, with reason, forward the necessary notice of motion for the amendment of the council's rules. I As the Auckland centre's proposals jhad been received only on the day jof the meeting, the Wellington centre decided this week to circulate copies of these proposals, together with its own sub-committee's report, to clubs' and to defer further consideration of! them until the next meeting of the centre, which will be held towards the] i, end ot August. j