McKenzie promises boxing tournament to honour Steve Tshwete

Sport, arts and culture minister Gayton McKenzie has promised to initiate a boxing tournament that will recognise the contribution of former sport minister Steve Tshwete.

“We are going to launch the Steve Tshwete Fighting Tournament soon and it will take place in April,” McKenzie said addressing the weekend's national boxing indaba at East London International Convention Centre.

Tshwete, an ANC Robben Island political prisoner who was the first sport minister appointed by Nelson Mandela in 1994 and later served as minister of safety and security, died in April 2002.

“He was such a great minister. Wherever I go, people tell me stories about him. He’s from another party [but] we don’t have jealousy — we are honouring greatness,” McKenzie said.

“The tournament will be in all provinces and there will be the main one at the Orient. It will be on TV.” 

A source said the department could inject about R200m into the tournament and Boxing SA (BSA) will produce criteria to select promoters to stage such events.

McKenzie also announced he's writing off the R2.5m BSA owes his department.

“Boxing SA could not even pay salaries while my department gave them R18m. They borrowed money from us and we had to lend them R2.5m. That’s how big the rot is. I am writing it off,” he said.

The minister explained the failure to fulfil his promise of taking legal action against the previous BSA board, whose term expired on December 12 2023.

“We made the promise of laying criminal charges against that board last year. We were then subsequently told investigations should happen through the board and should not happen through my department. 

“Then we set up the board. The board was given money. Now they are going to go after those people. The portfolio committee [on sport] has been made aware of that.”

SowetanLIVE