With only three women elected and the new President, Duma Boko expected to appoint more through special nomination, it is unlikely that the appointees will have special skills for sports. Therefore it all points to another man walking through the doors of the Ministry of Youth, Sport, Gender and Culture when Boko announces his lieutenants in the coming days. From the recently elected parliamentarians, it is difficult to pick who could be the most suitable candidate to ably take charge of the four portfolios of youth, sport, gender and culture. In most cases, sport appears to be the key determinant when the President appoints the Youth, Gender, Sport and Culture minister. Shaw Kgathi and Tumiso Rakgare had strong backgrounds in sport; one in softball and the other in football respectively. Boko might go with a technocrat, who might not have necessarily played sport but someone who understands its dynamics.
Sport is linked to youth as the majority of sport participants or enthusiasts are the youth. By appointing a technocrat, Boko will be looking for a person who cannot only influence policy but be able to shape it as well. In most cases, ministers have been figure heads who feed from permanent secretaries. It can work both ways, but politicians can be the proverbial spanner in the works. They are mostly self-serving individuals as opposed to the permanent secretaries who effectively do the donkey work only for the ministers to step in and collect the applause. It is a litmus test for Boko who himself is learning the ropes of running a country.
