Troubled East London boxing promoter Andile Sidinile will have to pay back the R800000 he was sponsored by BCM last year.
This is after he failed to host a promised tournament in December.
Last month he was suspended by Boxing South Africa (BSA).
BCM mayor Xola Pakati yesterday told the Daily Dispatch the metro was trying to recover the funds handed to Sidinile’s boxing promotion company Sijuta Boxing Promotions for the tournament in December.
The tournament, initially scheduled to take place in December, was delayed due to pending action against Sidinile by BSA on another matter.
Pakati said although he had not seen the letter addressed to Sidinile by BCM, he gave the approval that a letter should be sent to the promoter to recover the funds.
“The matter was brought to my attention by Witbooi recently. I am aware that a letter has been sent to Sidinile.
“If Sidinile is no longer eligible to host the tournament he must repay the municipality,” Pakati said.
The decision to try to recover the funds came after BSA suspended the licence of Sijuta Boxing Promotions on February15 following the outcome of a disciplinary hearing in December.
Sidinile was suspended for not paying boxers for a tournament he had held last April.
The Daily Dispatch reported last month that Sidinile had appeared before a BSA disciplinary committee on December 15, at which he was found guilty of all five charges against him.
The charges included:
lFailure to deposit purse monies prior to the April 22 tournament as required by the South African Boxing Act and Regulations;
lFailure to submit a statement under oath within seven days of staging the tournament to set out the income derived from the tournament as required by the South African Boxing Act and Regulations;
lRepeatedly making false and misleading statements or promises that Sijuta Promotions would make payment of the money to Boxing SA on or before the tournament;
lSubmission of a falsified letter to Boxing South Africa by Sijuta Promotions; and
lBringing Boxing SA into disrepute by failing to pay the purse, resulting in boxers being not paid.
Sidinile’s company organised the tournament to form part of the University of Fort Hare’s centenary celebrations.
However, some of the boxers who fought in the tournament were not paid, and as a result BSA had to pay them out of its own coffers.
Following his hearing in December, Sidinile was given until February 15 to reimburse BSA and pay the costs of the hearing.
However, Sidinile did not make the payments.
Pakati threatened that should Sidinile fail to pay back the sponsored R800000, legal processes would commence against the promoter.
When the Daily Dispatch contacted Sidinile he said: “I don’t want to comment. You are asking me about paying back the money and I’m requesting not to comment on the matter please.”
BSA chief executive Tsholofelo Lejaka said it was difficult to determine when Sidinile would be able to resume active participation in boxing.
“It could be a matter of a few years or more. It should be borne in mind that the outcomes of the disciplinary hearing are now part of the official records of the member’s BSA file.” — mamelag@dispatch.co.za