Boxing promoter Milenkovic threatens to sue Mbalula

In yet another shot fired across the bows in the drawn-out saga of the boxing blackout on the SABC, promoter Branco Milenkovic has threatened sports minister Fikile Mbalula with legal action if he persists with "misleading" the public by blaming him for the impasse.

Milenkovic's lawyers have sent Mbalula a strongly worded 22-page letter accusing him of shifting the blame for the delay in the national broadcaster televising boxing when it is actually his fault there is a stalemate in the first place.

The letter reads: "The statements made by you are misleading and false to say the least. As it will be evidenced in this letter, you incorrectly cast blame on our client regarding the television black-out.

"It is you and the department of sport who have delayed this matter. We present this correspondence to ensure that the truth is made known. In so far as your statements have been misleading in the extreme, all our client's right are reserved."

The correspondence, which was written by Milenkovic's lawyer, David Swartz, was in response to Mbalula's latest statements on the matter, where he said he and the promoter would meet to negotiate an out-of-court settlement to resolve an issue which goes back as far as 2012.

Milenkovic said he knew nothing about the supposed meeting. "I only learned about it from newspapers," he said.

His lawyer was more uncompromising, saying: "For you to make the statement that the meeting has been agreed when you have not even invited our client is reckless to say the least."

Asked to respond, Mbalula said: "I don't have anything to say about that 22-page letter. The matter is in court. You all know the story about television rights.

"I know what I want to do for boxing and I will speak about it when the time is right."

The battle for boxing's broadcasting rights with the SABC dates back to 2012, when then Boxing SA (BSA) boss (and former sports minister) Ngconde Balfour claimed the rights were owned by his organisation.

Milenkovic disputed that by taking both BSA and the SABC to court to establish clarity on who owned the rights as promoters had negotiated directly with the national broadcaster before.

Milenkovic argued that the move by BSA to take control of broadcasting was unconstitutional and not practised anywhere else in the world.

The matter has been on the court roll but was postponed at least once.

Milenkovic's letter also claimed Mbalula's own director-general, Alec Moemi, was inclined to side with the promoter on the matter.

" ... Moemi further agreed that it would be problematic if only the SABC entered into an agreement with BSA."

Mbalula's involvement in the whole saga is due to the Boxing Act stating that the sports minister is responsible for BSA, a responsibility Milenkovic's letter claimed that he had made a hash of.

"If one simply adhered to the Boxing Act and Statute, there would be no issue on boxing taking place on TV immediately," read the correspondence. "Your statement regarding this issue being back on square one, the blame for this is solely in your hands.

"Moemi, the department and you have simply failed to deal with matters on a meaningful level."