Boxing South Africa 2021/22 Annual Performance Plan

Sport, Arts and Culture

05 May 2021
Chairperson: Ms B Dlulane (ANC)
Share this page:

Meeting Summary

Video: Portfolio Committee on Sport, Arts and Culture

Annual Performance Plans

The Committee was briefed by Boxing South Africa (BSA) on matters varying from 2021/22 objectives, woman involvement in boxing, financial resources and support from government and stakeholders. The Committee heard that the number of tournaments hosted and targets achieved by BSA decreased due to the detrimental impact of COVID-19.

Members were concerned about the audit regression in the Auditor General (AG) report and were eager to know why AG recommendations had not been implemented as well as about the outstanding appointment of a permanent CEO for BSA.

Coordination and cooperation between the South African National Amateur Boxing Organization (SANABO) and BSA was discussed. These two bodies create a bridge from amateur to professional boxing. Since there has been a gap between amateur and professional boxing in the country, Members were concerned about the nature of relationship between the two entities. The resuscitation of the broadcasting of boxing by the national broadcaster, SABC, was also discussed as this attracts an audience and helps generate revenue.

Members said that boxing development was not a new aspect put forward by BSA to the Committee as it has been singing the same song for quite some time, yet there are seldom outcomes despite the financial support conferred on BSA by the government.

Woman involvement in boxing and their marginalisation in the sport was raised. Members asked how this ought to be changed, and also about the enhancement of their skills, potential and capabilities.

Meeting report

Boxing South Africa 2021/22 Annual Performance Plan (APP)
The Board Chairperson of Boxing South Africa, Luthando Phillip Jack, informed the Committee that the new board has been on duty for merely five months. However, he is cognizant of the fact that there is a lot that needs to be done. He asked the BSA board members to introduce themselves.

Mr Vusumuzi Mkhize, Director General of Department of Sports, Arts and Culture, was conferred powers by the Chairperson to proceed with his remarks.

He acknowledged that since the new BSA board had been appointed in December 2020, they have taken up  their work in earnest.

Among key responsibilities, BSA ought to provide a new structure for professional boxing in South Africa. This structure is to be coupled with the assurance of an effective and efficient administration. They sought promotion between  associations of boxers, their managers, promoters, trainers, officials and BSA. Most importantly, the responsibility was to ensure synergy across all stakeholders in order to revitalize the glorious boxing days of 'Terror' Mathebula and Malinga.

Another pivotal mandate was to create enabling mechanisms for the sake of boxing, not merely revenue. Thus access should be provided to young aspirant boxers at school, while also aiming for international success. This, according to the DG, is aligned with the Winning Nation programme. However, to achieve these objectives, the obstacles ahead need to be removed. The DG called for the  amendment of the regulations because the lack of a national strategy shared by all stakeholders might make these aspirations futile and unobtainable.

The BSA 2021/22 APP was presented by BSA board member, Ms Zandile Kabini (see document).

Discussion
Mr B Madlingozi (EFF) welcomed the presentation. His first question was from a concern about the litigation endured by the institutions deployed by the Department of Sports, Arts and Culture (DSAC). How much is the litigation costing the Department?”

His second question was to clarify if it was true that the Boxing South Africa is only using the notion of woman participation in boxing as a scapegoat to avoid scrutiny for its past misdeeds. The grounds for this question is based on the fact that women are seldom spoken in the mandate of the Boxing Act. Why are women not mentioned in the boxing mandate? He asked how many women were on the new Boxing South Africa board.

He had examined the programmes in the BSA presentation and he asked why are women in boxing not a priority in the programmes. “Does Boxing South Africa think boxing is mainly for men? He observed that there are several other dangerous sports in schools, like soccer and rugby. He asked why is BSA not engaging boxing school entities through SANABO.

Mr Madlingozi asked why did BSA perceive television broadcasting as their main source of power to attract young boys. Could this be the reason why Mbali Zantsi is not given the recognition she deserves? In 2007 Mbali Zantsi was the first women to stage a boxing tournament in South Africa. If BSA is not talking big about her, why sideline her? What do you think of Mbali Zantsi?

There are numerous young South Africans, blacks in particular, from impoverished backgrounds with inadequate means to quality education, and as the result, “they have no hope in education”. He asked why is BSA not utilizing its prerogative and means to inspect all underdeveloped areas and tap all the untapped talent out there. In so doing, BSA would help these kids not waste their lives.  His concern is why BSA is so engrossed on spending money merely on education. Whereas this money could have been used to change lives elsewhere – particularly youth who are susceptible to being absorbed and submerged in criminal activities.

Mr M Zondi (ANC) commended the informative presentation. His first question arose from the notion of women development. He asked if BSA was happy with the number of women professional boxers in South Africa.

Although the DG mentioned that there was regression in the audit, the presentation did not provide any information or emphasis on the regression. Usually when there is an increase in irregular expenditure, regression follows. He asked for the reasons for the regression in the audit outcomes.

He commended the surplus achieved by BSA in the previous financial year but asked for the cause of this surplus. Lastly, he asked for the reason behind the conflict and challenges between BSA and SANABO.

Mr M Seabi (ANC) welcomed the newly appointed BSA board. He noted the newly appointed board lacks diversity and has a gender imbalance. He asked the Deputy Minister the reason for this imbalance as there were six males and only one female on the board. How many of the board members have been reappointed? He asked when will there be the appointment of a permanent CEO for BSA.

According to media reports, the previous BSA CEO, Mr Moffat Qithi, was dismissed in 2015 but won his case in the labour court on the grounds of unfair dismissal. He asked if it was true that Boxing South Africa was ordered to pay him R4 million. He asked about the status of the appeal and when and how it will be dealt with moving forward.

He observed how soccer, rugby and cricket boards were urging the participation of supporters in the stadium. Given these outcries from other sports, he asked what is happening with boxing about this. Is BSA also staging tournaments?

Mr T Mhlongo (DA) directed his first question at the BSA Board Chairperson and asked him, “What legacy are you going to leave behind?”.

Mr Mhlongo asked about the reliability concerns raised by the Auditor General (AG). Targets are not achieved and irregular expenditure is a severe problem and this has been the case since 2007/2008. He asked if all the recommendations of the AG are implemented

On financial matters, he asked what intervention measures has BSA taken. BSA has always requested financial boosts in the form of resources, yet there is a lack of outcomes.

He asked BSA about their audit action plan, especially on previous audit matters. What is the status quo on  new management?

He noticed that many boxers do not have South African Revenue Service (SARS) documentation. What is being done to assist both male and female boxers with their tax compliance.

He asked BSA if it has an Human Resources (HR) policy and for it to be sent the Committee if there is one.

He asked about the long outstanding relationship between BSA and the SASCOC Team South Africa's boxing campaign at the Commonwealth Games. He asked the Department about its concerns about BSA and how assistance can be offered. His last question was if BSA was represented in SASCOC and if so who was the responsible representative?

The Chairperson appreciated the Director General’s opening remarks, the overview by the BSA Board Chairperson and the BSA presentation. She noted that Programme 1 ought to promote Boxing Development. However, there is lack of evidence of this over the past five years. Limpopo did not have Boxing clubs, and this was the case despite assistance from the Department. BSA has been going through a regression for quite some time. This worried her because intervention measures were always kept at bay.

Boxing South Africa response
Mr Luthando Philip Jack, BSA Board Chairperson, replied that women in Boxing is a priority and is being promoted. There is a Committee within BSA specifically designated for woman and Ms Zandile Kabini is responsible for this Committee. A key catalyst for this development would be funding from government at both National and Provincial level. He urged the Department to make it mandatory for all sectors of government to have at least two female bouts. BSA celebrates excellence in the sport of boxing and woman have their own exclusive category.

He also responded to matters related to unethical talent. The township and sports at schools were key contexts, because part of the relationship BSA has with SANABO is to fashion out talent, out of a development plan.

On the comment about regression, he was shocked by this and wanted to confirm the facts before facing a whip by Parliament. 

The appointing of a new permanent CEO is before the courts. The new board wants to ensure stability so that the plans can be implemented sufficiently by an effective and ethical leadership.

The new members of the board consist of seven members, four new and three old. According to him, this symbolises continuity and change.

The number of boxing tournaments in South Africa last year declined, and COVID-19 is undoubtedly the main reason for this decline. Despite the outbreak, BSA still continues to stage tournaments; however, under the strict COVID regulations. In undertaking these measures, BSA supported promoters with payment for the  costs of tests and this contributed to the alleviation of costs. All boxing tournaments have been monitored to ensure compliance with COVID regulations and to prevent boxing matches from becoming outbreak hotspots.

On the legacy he ought to leave behind as BSA Chair, his stance on legacy was far more communitarian than individualistic, this can be seen on his insistence of the new trajectory. Once the vision is shared and upheld by the collective, the individual is precluded from insulating oneself. He prefers to rather consider this as being “given a national assignment, therefore, it is a national duty".

Ms Cindy Nkomo, BSA Acting CEO, informed the Committee that there have been several inquiries on the matter of SARS which date back to 2011/12. However, the undertaking ceased to materialise. Further, boxers are paid by promoters. In the context of a tournament, promoters submit the boxer's purse to BSA and BSA pays this over to the boxer, on a term basis. She asserted that BSA does not distance themselves from boxers about this despite the fact that the boxers are not employed by BSA, because she realized there is a gap.

Ms Nkomo said that the HR policy can and will be made available to the Committee. BSA policies are reviewed on an annual basis.

During 2021/22, BSA will be taking extra measures to track down and correct all audit findings. She assured the Committee that BSA intends to ensure that the AG recommendations are implemented.

The resistance to change detected within some BSA members is according to her conservative because they are reluctant to change the way of doing things.

Women have been able to participate in the sport of boxing for a very long period of time. However, systemic challenges reduced the number of participants, woman in particular. Of the 1 100 licensed players, only 100 were woman. The reason for this imbalance in participation is because woman find it difficult to continue training if there is uncertainty on whether they will fight a match or not. She promised the Committee that this will change.

Mr Thabang Moses, BSA CFO, replied about the surplus. There are a few reasons which had an impact on creating a surplus. In 2018/19, there was a slight diminishment in the management of the treasury and cash reserves, while the balance of accounts slightly increased. There was also a decrease in liabilities in 2019/20, a decrease in lease payment obligations and a decrease in the expenses in each province. As a result, BSA was able to turn a deficit into a surplus.

Department of Sports, Arts and Culture (DSAC) response
The Director General apologised for the error in the report. The AG had issued an unqualified audit for 2019/20.

Dr Sumayya Khan, DSAC Deputy Director General: Sport Promotion, answered about underrepresentation of woman in boxing. There were many women who saw the advertised post and subsequently applied; however, their capabilities did not meet those required by the board. Most of them lacked both skills and competencies.

On the composition of the new board, she explained that three board members were previously on the board. These were Gilberto Martins, Chairperson Luthando and Zandile Kabini.

Mr Sibusiso Tsanyane, DSAC Deputy Director: Entity Oversight and Interface in the Department, confirmed the challenges of criteria. He said that the number of female applicants was limited. For instance, out of 48 applicants only three were female. Their inadequate skill set hindered their chances of appointment.

Ms Khan continued about female boxing. She referred to the DG’s report which indicated that this was part of their efforts in engagements with Provincial Heads of Department and the Technical Intergovernmental Committee (TIC). She urged that all boxing bouts issued by government should be between four to six bouts so that women may also be included.

She indicated that a few years back, BSA and the SABC had been trying to cooperate and coordinate the  resuscitation of boxing in TV programming.

Ms Khan argued that the work of Mbali Zantsi has been acknowledged. For instance, she is the recipient of a ministerial award which was given to her at a sports ceremony in Women's Month.

There are initiatives in place to help promote woman, argued Khan. “Two-woman promoters in Durban – staged on all woman tournaments”, she said. This could not be achieved without the participation and conduct of the Strategic Stakeholders Planning Sector, she said. However, she was not oblivious to the fact that, more needs to be done.

Ms Khan also touched on the sport of boxing at schools. The stumbling block in this matter has been the Department of Basic Education. They are not willing or receptive to including boxing in the school sport programmes. Their argument is that it is a combat sport; therefore it is not suitable to have it within the environment of the school.

Ms Zandile Kabini, BSA board member and Chairperson of Woman in Boxing Committee, also replied to questions on woman involvement in boxing. The aim of this specially designated Committee is to increase women’s skills level and experience and enhance their potential to compete against their national and international counterparts. This skills development programme is aimed at females ranging from boxers, ring officials and promoters.

Ms Kabini said the Women in Boxing Committee is looking at recruiting as many female participants as possible from all races. The purpose of this initiative is to lay a level playing ground for women to get a share of exposure like their male counterparts. To achieve these objectives, the Women in Boxing Committee and the BSA Board have crafted clear activities associated with timelines. This is to ensure that all strategic objectives are realized.

Part of the clearly crafted activities are participation of woman in boxing tournaments and capacity building workshops. Motivational speakers are also invited to unpack boxing challenges for females in particular. The Women in Boxing Committee seeks to ensure that lessons for females must also be about life orientation and life experiences. It also ought to ensure that females are exposed to basic financial management. Lastly, they want to ensure their boxers have an adequate profile for marketing purposes.

Chief Director in the Department of Sport and Recreation, Mr Simphiwe Mncube, spoke about the relationship between SANABO and BSA. This relationship has endured difficulties in the last couple of years, to the extent that in 2019/20, the executive at the time resigned. However, after the interim committee was put in place, the two entities have been working on producing a programme.

The upcoming executive elections for the SA National Amateur Boxing Organisation (SANABO) ought to transcend the matter of allowing amateur boxers who have won medals to turn professional this year which BSA turned down. The confirmed date for the elections is 5 June 2021.

The BSA Board Chairperson asked to clarify some issues before the Deputy Minister closed the meeting. The Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) arbitration found in the favor of the CEO. On the advice provided by the lawyers, the matter has been taken on review to the Labour Court. According to their lawyers, they have a strong case. Lastly, he disagreed with Mr Madlingozi that the first female boxing promoter was Mbali Zantsi. Instead, it was Gladys “Noforty” Tsenene, and may her soul rest in peace.

Deputy Minister closing remarks
Deputy Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture, Ms Nocawe Mafu, commended the cooperation between BSA and SANABO, while also encouraging their members to put boxing at the forefront, rather than personal interests.

She was pleased that woman empowerment dominated the talks as this means that everybody understood the importance of woman involvement in the sport.

What satisfied her even more was that the notion of woman empowerment in boxing was not merely spoken about. There were programmes and institutions in place to implement this in various parts of the country.

The Deputy Minister recommended that South Africa should consciously start writing the history of woman in the sport because this will make them be taken seriously. This will be make everyone appreciate from where they came and where they are going.

The meeting adjourned.

Download as PDF

You can download this page as a PDF using your browser's print functionality. Click on the "Print" button below and select the "PDF" option under destinations/printers.

See detailed instructions for your browser here.

Share this page: