MEC comes to Tete's aid

Zolani “Last Born” Tete will move into better lodgings thanks largely to the efforts of sports, recreation, arts and culture MEC Pemmy Majodina.

News of East London’s IBF junior-bantamweight world champion’s dire living conditions sparked some people to offer their help with Majodina leading the fray.

This while Tete’s manager Mla Tengimfene is still seething with rage for being portrayed as an unfit manager after the boxer had to share a room in a Johannesburg house with his three sparring partners while preparing for his crucial title clash in England next month.

Majodina confirmed that she communicated with former PSL general manager Andile Ncobo to find proper accommodation for the boxers.

Ncobo offered his Johannesburg house for the boxers to stay in until everything was sorted out.

“Yes we have found a house for them and all logistics will be sorted out tomorrow,” said Majodina, who is a passionate sports fan.

She dismissed the perception that the department was taking over Tengimfene’s managerial duties, adding that she was touched by the story she saw in newspapers.

“I do not run affairs of boxing nor do I micro manage them but this intervention must be seen in the context of Ubuntu. Zolani Tete is proud of the province and has recently won the Sports Star and Sportsman of the Year award. We are confident that his manager is capable of taking care of him.”

Ncobo said he was also moved when he saw the story in the papers and immediately called Tengimfene to offer his help.

“You must recall that preparing for a fight needs things like diet so when the boxers are in that environment this must be hard to adhere to,” he said.

“People know me mostly because of soccer but my first love is boxing and I could not sit back and do nothing in that situation.”

Tengimfene flew to Johannesburg from East London yesterday to attend to the situation.

However he had harsh words for sinister forces which he said were trying to distract Tete from the important fight of his life.

Tete will defend his crown against unbeaten British star Paul Butler in Liverpool on March 6.

The fight carries far more prestige than the championship belt at stake as Butler will be attempting to break a 104 record of becoming the second British fighter to win a world title in a heavier division then drop down to win another one in a lower weight class.

This after he beat compatriot Stuart Hall for the IBF bantamweight crown last year then vacated it to drop down to junior-bantamweight to challenge Tete.

Tengimfene maintained there had been no distractions in Tete’s preparation of the fight.

“Everything is still on course and this accommodation thing was just a minor misunderstanding that had no bearing on his preparations,” he said.

Tengimfene said proper accommodation had already been arranged but when the boxers arrived late it had been given to someone else.

Then IBO featherweight champion Lusanda Komanisi, who is based in Johannesburg but hails from Mdantsane, helped with temporary accommodation arrangements this week after Tete returned to Johannesburg from the EC Achievers Sports Awards in Port Elizabeth and the Premier Boxing League where his brother scored a second round knockout over Mzwabantu Dabaza.

“Tete had no problem about the place because he knew that it was just temporary until I arrive in Johannesburg to sort it out,” he charged.

Tete has opted to prepare for his fights in Johannesburg after a string of mysterious illness when preparing in Mdatsane.

He and his sparring partners Thabo Sonjica, Mfusi Maxhayi and Bongani Silila will move to Ncobo’s house today.