Article by Randy Engelbrecht PRO – Federated Board of Homing Unions
Article Published 26 November 2009



Musical Chairs in Pigeon Racing!!

With everyone’s attention shifting to presentations and breeding for the new season, it is perhaps appropriate to reflect on some of the other issues that affects our pigeon racing.

One very pertinent and conscientious issue is the movement of fanciers between the FBHU, NRHU, WPHU and Boland Unions. It is disturbing that so many fanciers feel the need sometimes to move elsewhere for various reasons even before they have given it due consideration.

Sure there are extenuating circumstances, in particular financial which in these times of recession have forced some to pack it in, either completely or just for a year or two until such time that things improve. The reason mostly given is that the FBHU has through the years failed to handle its finances in such a way that fanciers could feel satisfied that their money had been handled in a professional and transparent manner. Such allegations and accusations had only helped to create the wrong impression to the “other” side when fanciers decided to move. They were only too happy to accept members moving over as it obviously grew their numbers and would automatically lighten their burden in respect of transport. Let us not for a moment believe that these bodies have a squeaky clean record.

While it is every fancier’s inherent right to race his pigeons where he wants to it is also his responsibility to pay his debts to the body he belongs to. Forgetting that they were the ones who incurred the debt, it was easy to use that as an excuse (where is the Board’s money?) to move when the FBHU did an audit on outstanding monies. This created the perception that the FBHU lacked the skills and the will to administer its affairs in an organised fashion. Based on the history of the FBHU, who almost exclusively served the previously disadvantaged communities till recently, many fanciers were being accommodated in order to keep them in the sport. A lot of fanciers joined other unions, but left without clearances, still indebted to the FBHU. So, the question is who created the monster in the first place? Dare I say that in 2009 just about every fancier in the FBHU adhered to the principle that you pay before you play.

Not withstanding, I believe that through this entire saga nobody comes out on top and there are no winners. The sport suffers through sometimes malicious rumours and disgruntled fanciers venting their frustrations and anger in the wrong manner instead of dealing with the matter in a civil and democratic way. The other bodies are not entirely to blame for the current state of affairs, but with fanciers moving in and out on an annual basis, the sport is never going to be unified, which should be the ultimate goal for everyone concerned about the ever escalating costs of pigeon racing.

Having recently spoken a very influential member of the WPHU, it has become apparent that the day is nigh that we get together around a table and explore the way forward in order to sustain our beloved sport. Gone are the days that one group should look to the other and say: “Dis hulle skuld”, even now still referring to them as “Boere” and the other group say that they do not want to race against the “Colourds” because of the history of apartheid. Believe me, I have been in the presence of fanciers on both sides who utter these words. The mere fact that we belong to one unified body in SANPO should be the catalyst to start communicating with each other and try and find common ground so that we could rid ourselves of the shackles of separation.

Randy Engelbrecht – PRO Federated Board of Homing Unions