‘A sham’: Former board candidate slams racing club, reeling from Kanga’s shock departure

4 hours ago 2

The man who withdrew from this year’s Melbourne Racing Club board elections in disgust after his candidate statement was heavily redacted says he is prepared to fill a casual vacancy created by John Kanga’s shock resignation, but that he has lost faith in the entire board.

It’s impossible to ignore John Kanga’s absence at Caulfield Guineas.

But long-time club member Peter Brown, who was at the Kanga-less Caulfield Racecourse on Saturday for the Caulfield Guineas, says even though he was prepared to step up, the vacant seat should not be filled.

He said the MRC board should instead be placed into administration because the recent election process was “a sham”.

The Age does not suggest any impropriety in the process of the MRC board elections.

The Age reported on Friday night that Kanga had quit the $1 billion racing club as chairman on the eve of its lucrative Caulfield Cup week carnival after questions about his car being used in a 22-kilogram cocaine trafficking case and new revelations about his past links to loan sharks.

The Age does not suggest Kanga was involved in any criminal activity, and he has never been accused of any crime.

His replacement, Cameron Fisher, who was voted in as new chairman during an emergency board meeting on Friday afternoon, was spotted smiling in the mounting yard during the presentation ceremony for winners of the second race.

When approached for comment about stepping into Kanga’s shoes just 12 months after he was elected to the board, Fisher politely declined.

While Kanga’s absence was impossible to ignore under a clear spring sky for the start of the Caulfield carnival, it was business as usual in the hustle and bustle of the mounting yard for trainers such as Peter Moody, Danny O’Brien and Ciaron Maher, and gun jockeys including James McDonald and Jamie Melham.

But interest will build later in the afternoon when a horse that Kanga part-owns alongside Collingwood coach Craig McRae, called Feroce, runs in the $1 million group 1 Toorak Handicap at 3.50.

Feroce is trained by a young horseman mentored by Kanga, Englishman Dom Sutton.

The Age reported last month that schoolteacher Brown withdrew from the MRC board election race after his 200-word statement to members was cut to just 70 words by the club’s executive committee. Official election documents proving Brown’s concerns were seen by this masthead.

Brown, who was also at Caulfield on Saturday, said he had pulled out because his redacted statement would have been too humiliating to present to members.

He would have been standing against then-chairman Kanga and two other board members – Frank Polio and treasurer Alison Saville – who were elected unopposed.

“I have put in a submission to Racing Victoria last week for administrators to be appointed,” Brown said.

“Part of the reason is that on the evidence provided by myself to Racing Victoria based on precedent, rules of racing and common law rulings, the most recent election should be vitiated for a number of reasons.

“It was a sham election where CorpVote [the independent returning officer] had their delegated powers effectively overridden by instructions from certain executive committee members, and Racing Victoria integrity has been provided with primary documentary evidence of that fact.

“Paradoxically, in my redacted candidate statement I suggested an independent audit committee be established, but that was deleted not by the returning officer but at the direction of the executive committee.”

CorpVote said it could not comment on an election process when approached by this masthead.

The Age also reported last month that 24 memberships linked to Kanga and his family were purchased by a single credit card in the lead-up to the MRC’s bitter boardroom battle last year, when he seized control of the $1 billion sporting club. The MRC denied the block of memberships affected the outcome of the club’s September elections, and said they did not breach any rules.

After stepping down as chairman on Friday, Kanga released a statement saying: “In recent weeks there has been a series of public attacks directed at me personally. While I completely reject the nature and accuracy of those attacks, I do not want them to distract from the club, its members, or the excitement of the Caulfield Cup carnival.

“My decision to step aside is about putting the interests of the club and the broader racing industry ahead of my own. The MRC is bigger than any one individual, and I want to ensure the focus remains where it belongs – on racing, our members, staff, and delivering a world-class spring carnival.”

Racing Victoria released a statement on Friday night saying: “We note Mr Kanga’s decision to resign as MRC chairman and the committee’s subsequent decision to appoint Cameron Fisher as his replacement.

“We have not been briefed by Mr Kanga on his reasons but note his comments within the MRC’s statement.

“This development won’t have an impact on the delivery of the Caulfield Cup carnival. The MRC will put on three exceptional days of racing and entertainment over the next week.”

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