SA Harness Racing Club president Ann Mowday officially reprimanded by Corporate Affairs Commission
South Australia’s peak harness racing club has been ordered to cancel a meeting called by its president to stop moves to put it into voluntary administration over debts of $3.1 million.
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South Australia’s peak harness racing club has been ordered to cancel a meeting which was called to stop moves to put it into voluntary administration over debts of $3.1 million.
The Corporate Affairs Commission has written to SA Harness Racing Club president Ann Mowday telling her she should have obtained the approval of her full committee before sending a notice to members calling the meeting.
The commission also told Mrs Mowday that she had to withdraw a video and brochure produced by a public relations company attacking the sport’s governing body, Harness Racing SA (HRSA).
In a letter to four committee members who complained about Mrs Mowday, the commission said it had determined she had called the meeting “in breach of the club’s rules’’.
“The Commission has issued directions to President Mowday to remedy the breach, including withdrawing the notice sent to members, retracting the brochure and removing the YouTube video,” it said.
In the video, Mrs Mowday accused some of her committee members of working with HRSA to place the financially troubled club into voluntary administration.
She also blamed the organisation for many of the club’s financial problems, which have been worsened by a $2.4 million debt owed by a property developer for land which was handed over in 2018 without full payment.
The land – on the corner of Globe Derby Drive and Port Wakefield Rd – is near a site earmarked for a new entertainment complex which the club is pursuing despite losing $4.6 million from its existing operations over the past five years.
The four committee members who complained about Mrs Mowday have been questioning the club’s financial operations since they were elected last November, prompting Mrs Mowday to call the special general meeting.
Mrs Mowday wanted the meeting to authorise all committee positions to be declared vacant and for a new committee to be elected.
She also wanted the meeting to block any move to put the club into voluntary administration while approving a new $2 million loan from a private investor secured by a consultant being paid $6000 a month.
In her video and brochure, she called for support from members to ensure the resolutions she had formulated were passed.
In the letter sent to the four committee members who complained about Mrs Mowday, the commission said they had to withdraw a letter they sent to members outlining their concerns “so that the committee is restored to an equal footing and members are not unfairly influenced by a particular position”.
“Moving forward, the committee will need to agree on the content of the notice issued to members calling a SGM (special general meeting), whether it is called as a result of a requisition of members or by resolution of the committee,” it said.
The first special meeting – which was due to be held on April 9 – was deferred because of the COVID-19 pandemic, with Mrs Mowday then attempting to pursue a postal ballot.
Mrs Mowday has been approached for comment.