After the Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture Gayton McKenzie disbanded the Boxing South Africa (BSA) board last week, it has come to the attention of the Sunday World that the National Professional Boxing Promoters Association (NPBPA) members are hoping to be part of the new board that the minister will elect.
McKenzie dissolved the board that was appointed by the previous minister, Zizi Kodwa.
Kodwa resigned in a huff and is attending a court trial after he was charged with taking a bribe and corruption.
McKenzie appeared before the Portfolio Committee on Sport, Arts and Culture on Tuesday. He accounted for the entity’s annual performance plan and other pertinent matters.
The board was comprised of chairman Sfiso Shongwe, Luvuyo Bayeni, Sakhiwe Sodo, Romy Titus and Luxolo September. Other members were Nandi Mheshe, Luthando Zibeko and Koketso Tsebe. And the minister is on the verge of appointing a new board to lead the sports facilities in the country.
NPBPA lodged a case against the former minister
One of the reasons for the disbandment of the board was that the NPBPA lodged a case against the former minister. This on the grounds that no consultation was done before the board was appointed. It is said the board being there was costing the department millions of rands in litigation cases, hence it was discontinued.
Said chairman of the NPBPA, Ayanda Matiti: “The way forward can only be articulated after our meeting with the minister. We have instructed the department to give us a date where we can meet the minister.
“We welcome the dissolution of the board by the minister,” said Matiti.
He stated that they received an order from the Pretoria High Court three weeks ago. The order was reversing a decision of a board meeting from last year.
“It annulled the meeting that appointed the acting CEO, who was employed as director of operations. This was …done without having received the report from the previous board. The court reversed all the decisions taken by that board until today.”
About being part of the new board, Matiti said that it is something that they are keen on and will engage the minister.
Keen to be part of the new board
“We are keen; we are engaging in a consultation meeting with the minister. And we are interested, …that is why we took the previous minister to court.
“We are not contesting or questioning the authority of the minister. The act says the minister must appoint a board after consulting with the associations that are recognised. That is an obligation the previous minister disregarded. We are hopeful that the new minister will take that into cognisance. And that boxing will rise from the ashes.
“The main objective is the future of boxing in the country. We should all contribute to building the future and we appreciate the new minister’s energy. Sport must be clean, and we should be producing excellent boxers. And we must create a new wave of boxers who can win world championships. That should be our main drive,” Matiti added.
