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By Gilbert Munetsi
A resolution to boycott all boxing activity should the Ministry of Sport, Youth, Arts and Recreation fail to appoint a board of control within seven days was arrived at during a crunch meeting held in Harare on Wednesday.
The meeting, also extended virtually for the benefit of those from outside Harare and was convened by promoters and managers who tabled matters to do with challenges they faced.
Chief among the problems was lack of representation in the current setup.
In reference to the Boxing and Wrestling Control Act (Chapter 76) amended to 25:02, they unanimously agreed that the objects of a legal vehicle which should regulate, control and exercise general supervision over the sport were synonymous by their absence.
A boxing authority, they lamented, has not been in place for almost a full term, a situation they said had resulted in a number of irregularities emerging and hampering progress.
The last board’s term of office lapsed on December 31, 2019, and since then, new commissioners are yet to be ushered in.
Currently, the secretariat has had to assume the duties of the board which include licensing stakeholders and sanctioning tournaments, among others.
“Please be advised that on February 16, 2022, boxing stakeholders met with a view to discussing a number of issues that are affecting the sport of boxing. The meeting took some resolutions, inter alia to write this correspondence to you before resorting to the next available option.
“By way of background, our understanding is that all the activities of boxing are as per the Boxing and Wrestling Control Act [Chapter 25:02] (hereinafter referred to as “the Act”).
“It provides for the establishment of a Zimbabwe National Boxing Control Board (hereinafter referred to as “the Board”) whose objects are, inter alia to regulate, control, and exercise supervisory control over boxing issues. All members of the Board are appointed by the Minister of Sports.
“As stakeholders, we are worried that the boxing fraternity has since December 2019, been operating without a Board pursuant to the expiry of the term of office of the previous one. We are also worried that the activities of boxing are now being run by an office of the secretariat which, unfortunately, is fragrantly flouting the law.
“As you might be aware, Honourable Minister, the office of the secretariat sent out reviewed licence fees and other requirements to be met by promoters so they may be eligible for the grant of a licence.
“Our feeling is that the actions of the office are a violation of Section 9 of the Act which provides for the enactment of Regulations to regulate, inter alia, the registration of any person as a boxer, official, manager or promoter; and the fees payable in respect of the licences.
“The non-appointment of the Board by your office has resulted in the boxing fraternity operating in an auto pilot mode and the secretariat adopting a ‘laissez faire’ attitude as there is no governing body to control and regulate activities.
“With the above in mind we, as boxing stakeholders, would like to demand that your honourable office should show cause within seven (7) days of receipt of this letter why we should not boycott all boxing activities in the country until a boxing Board is appointed,” read part of the letter to Minister Kirsty Coventry.
The stakeholders also demanded that the circular sent by the secretariat to all boxing promoters, managers, boxers and coaches be withdrawn with immediate effect and that the same office ceases to operate as the Board until the latter is appointed.
“We look forward to your response within seven (7) days and should we not receive a response or any positive feedback on the matter, we advise that we will all boycott all boxing activities in the country until our demands are met,” added the letter.
Also under spotlight in the discussions was the decision by the secretariat to adopt a new baby, Mixed Martial Arts, which they said had no vote from treasury. Instead, they argued, there was need to resuscitate the sport of wrestling (umbrellaed in the Act) that has gone into extinction.
They questioned the signatories to the boxing bank account in the absence of board members who should have engaged in a hand-over, take-over process with the predecessing board.
Also queried was the transition in payment of licence fees from local currency to hard without revisiting the Act and making amendments to it first, as well as addition of Clauses in the promoter-boxer contract and the pre-fight report on medical examination.
“We have had a scenario, back in 2016, when the term of office of the board bearers was on the verge of expiring and the Minister then extended their term by three months while new appointees were being sought.
“It was succeeded by the one that served from 2017-19 and it was a period when the sport flourished such that we hosted a total 36 tournaments during that term.
“That is the phase we had the likes of Kalakoda, Mau Mau, Manyuchi, Gypsite, GISAA and others hosting,” said a promoter who preferred anonymity.
He said the way of a transitional authority would have gone a long way in abating the challenges they currently face.
Permanent Secretary in the Sports Ministry, Dr Thokozile Chitepo, in an interview last week admitted the lack of a board was constraining some decisions and said her Ministry was seized with the matter. She promised a board would be in place “within the next few weeks.” Nhau/Indaba
