The Ria Ledwaba anti-Safa circus has rolled into town, with two football outcasts, Leslie Sedibe and Vernon Seymour, leading the charge.
For some time now, Ledwaba has been out of the structures of national football.
Her slide from grace started at the 2022 SA Football Association elective congress, where she suffered a humiliating defeat after she challenged Danny Jordaan for the presidency.
Jordaan, with 186 votes, polled seven times more votes than Ledwaba (27).
It was a crushing defeat, but Ledwaba has done her utmost to maintain a presence in South African football.
Ledwaba, a former Safa vice-president, has become a fierce critic of the governing body, and in particular Jordaan.
On Wednesday, Ledwaba enjoyed the spotlight of the media at a conference in Johannesburg, where she made light of a letter Safa sent her recently.
The media conference was fronted by Sedibe, a former Safa CEO. In 2016, he was banned by Fifa for five years for match-fixing.
The letter from Safa CEO Lydia Monyepao informed Ledwaba that she would no longer be banned from football, because the national organisation had realised that she was no longer involved in football.
In part, Safa’s letter stated: “Based on the above, and because you are nowhere within the structures of Safa, with no locus standi and as such we have no jurisdiction over you, we regret having sent you the letter dated March 6, 2024, which is hereby withdrawn.
“However, if and when you wish to become active in South African football or any of its structures, then we reserve our right to take the appropriate legal action in terms of the Safa statutes and regulations.”
In the March 6 letter, Safa declared Ledwaba a “persona non grata” within the organisation.
“After careful consideration and thorough review of recent events, the Safa national executive committee has decided that you are to be declared ‘persona non grata’ within our organisation. In other words, you are disqualified from all and every football and football-related activity under the jurisdiction of Safa,” it read.
After receiving this letter, Ledwaba turned to attorney Seymour to address Safa. Seymour is well-known in football circles, but has been banned for life from the sport after a sexual misconduct charge.
Seymour wrote to Safa to say that Ledwaba had nothing to do with the recent raid the Hawks conducted on Safa House in connection with allegations of fraud and theft amounting to R1.3 million.
Ledwaba has called on world football governing body Fifa to disband the leadership of Safa.
A few months ago, she challenged the constitutionality of the organising surrounding the 2022 elections.
She said the elections ought to be declared null and void, but the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria ruled against Ledwaba.