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Boxing SA accused of bias

Bongani Magasela

Bongani Magasela

Boxing SA has been accused by its own licensees of having double standards when dealing with issues that affect licensees.

They say Eyethu Boxing Promotions was omitted from the list of nominees for the 2008 promoter's award simply because its owner, Mzimase Mnguni owed Boxing SA thousands of rands yet Robs Promotions was included in that list when its owner, Blacky Seoe also owed the governing body R150 000.

This, they said, left them flabbergasted. Robs Promotions shared the award with Rainbow Promotions of Pat Molefe.

Sowetan, working on this tip-off, called Boxing SA's Bongani Khumalo regarding these damning allegations.

The chief operations officer was at first reluctant to respond but he was eventually persuaded to open up.

"It is incorrect to say Mnguni was not nominated because of that [the debt]. He was not nominated at all," Khumalo said.

"The truth is Mnguni paid us before the finalisation of the nominations for all the awards, which was a week before the actual ceremony.

"This is proof that he was not affected by his credit [debt]."

Khumalo said BRD and Golden Gloves also owed them money but they had settled their debts.

"Berman [Golden Gloves' boss] even wrote to the minister of sport complaining that we are discriminating against his promotion. But we satisfied the minister with our explanation.

"I spoke to Berman through e-mails and we smoked the piece pipe.

"He always pays in advance but there was miscalculation this time from Shona MacTaggart [secretary of Golden Gloves]."

Regarding Seoe, Khumalo said: "Blacky said the tournament staged during Macufe [the Free State cultural festival] was not his but only his licence was used by the Free State government.

"But our interpretation was different. I called him and went through the regulations which are clear that any other income associated with staging of a boxing tournament - pay.

"In fact it was not a refusal to pay but rather a misunderstanding.

"He also paid long before the awards otherwise he would not have been a nominee, let alone winning the award."

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