Boxing SA Annual Report 2005/06 briefing & noting of Complaint Against SA Rugby Union President
Sport, Arts and Culture
15 May 2007
Meeting Summary
A summary of this committee meeting is not yet available.
Meeting report
SPORT AND RECREATION
PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE
15 May 2007
BOXING SA ANNUAL REPORT 2005/06 BRIEFING, & NOTING OF COMPLAINT AGAINST
SOUTH AFRICAN RUGBY UNION PRESIDENT
Chairperson: Mr B Komphela (ANC)
Documents handed out:
Boxing South Africa
Annual Report 2005\06
Boxing South Africa
on the Annual Report 2005\06 presentation
Audio Recording of
the Meeting
SUMMARY
The Committee noted that a complaint alleging deliberate misrepresentation to
the Committee had been lodged by Dr Bhorat against Dr Basson. Dr Basson had
been asked to respond and the Committee would consider the matter once his
response was received.
Boxing SA briefed the Committee on its Annual Report. It was noted that an
Acting CFO and new CEO had been appointed, and hopefully this would result in
the turnaround efforts already started by the Board being taken to further
fruition. Although the Board had tried to instill better monitoring and
management, it was hampered by the fact that funding promised by the Department
of Sport had still not been forthcoming, and the drop in revenue from Lotteries
and declining sponsorship were putting the future development of Boxing SA at
risk. Members asked questions on monitoring and the matters reported on by the
Auditor General, training and development of financial staff, tracking of lost
documents after amalgamation of provincial centres, reasons for the decline in
revenue, new sponsorship plans, the Baby Champs programme, and mechanisms to
monitor the current assets. The Committee asked what steps were being taken to
try to revive boxing and the promotion of female boxing, and commented that the
decline of boxing was as a result of bad planning and lack of development. An
explanation was sought why the strategic plan and budget were not aligned. The
Committee was displeased that the Department had not sent through the promised
funding and instructed the Department to resolve the issue, and inform the
Committee in writing of the steps taken.
The Department of Sport and Recreation advised the Committee of the changes
made to the Strategic Plan following three workshops, and taking into account
comments made by the Committee and the role expected of the Department in 2010.
All work was aligned with the State of the Nation address and all key role
players were involved.
MINUTES
Complaint against Dr K Basson
The Chairperson stated that on 4 April he had received a letter that was
addressed to the Speaker by the Secretary of Transformation and Anti-Racism
Rugby Committee, Dr A Bhorat. In it Dr Bhorat alleged that the South African
Rugby Union Vice President Dr Koos Basson had deliberately misled parliament
when he appeared before the Portfolio Committee on 20 February 2007. That
meeting had been considering the transformation agenda. Dr Bhorat stated in the
letter that he had a valid argument to prove that the statements made by Dr
Basson were misleading.
Allegations that a person had deliberately misled Parliament were very serious
and Adv A Gordon had advised that the Committee must afford Dr Basson an
opportunity to respond. Therefore a letter had been addressed to Dr Basson on
15 May, asking for his comments by 31 May. Once that response had been received
the Committee would deliberate further. The Chairperson stated that if it
should be necessary to hold an enquiry, this would be done in closed session.
Adv A Gordon, Legal Advisor, Parliament, commented that he Chairperson had
outlined the procedure sufficiently, and stated that no investigation could
commence without Dr Basson’s comments. It would be correct to let Dr Basson
have sight of the allegations by Dr Bhorat. The matter had roused much emotion.
He confirmed that, should this be considered desirable after the response had
been received, the Rules of the National Assembly did allow for the holding of
enquiries.
Mr Frolick commented that the matter should be dealt with as quickly as
possible as the allegation related to such a sensitive topic.
Boxing SA (BSA) Annual Report 2005/06 Briefing
Mr Dali Mpofu, Chairperson, Boxing SA, briefed the Committee on the Annual
Report. He stated that he had taken the Committee into BSA's confidence when he
had outlined some the problems experienced, prior to the Annual Report. BSA now
believed that it had turned a corner and would be able to submit the financial
expenditure report on schedule. The Board had underestimated some of the
challenges, and had realized that problems were worse than they seemed at
first, especially given the challenges in staffing. The Chief Executive Officer
was suspended in relation to the Annual Report and that action had served to
further weaken the organisation. The Auditor-General's staff had been helpful
but even with their intervention matters could not be brought to a successful
conclusion. This had resulted in negative comments on the financial situation
of BSA. The process of appointing a new CEO required BSA to work with both the
Ministers of Sport and Finance. However the appointment had now been finalised
and the new CEO was ready to begin. BSA had also restructured the provincial
offices because it wanted to decentralise the organisation and to have proper
representation.
Mr Mpofu tabled the revenue and expenditure statements for BSA, noting that the
revenue was set to decline in 2006/7 with removal of funding from the Lotteries
and sponsors. BSA had been informed, in March, that it would receive extra
funding from the Department, but it seemed as if the process had been delayed
by bureaucratic problems, as no additional funding had yet been received. BSA
was also having problems with promoters not adhering to the Act.
Mr Mpofu highlighted the achievements for 2005 and 2006, which included the
removal of the three-fight rule, reduced licencing fees, rotation of ring
officials, the launch of the Baby Champs project and the establishment of a
regional office in Port Elizabeth. He outlined the training and development
undertaken.
Mr Mpofu hoped the Board, at the end of its term, would be able to leave a
better organisation.
Discussion
Mr S Masango (ANC) was surprised that the revenue figures had dropped by 45%.
It seemed that whatever had been achieved in 2005/06 could not be repeated.
Mr Masango enquired when the CEO was going to start.
Mr Mpofu stated that BSA had received the approval of the appointment only in
November 2006, but at that time the new CEO was ill. He would start next week.
Mr Masango commented that it was admirable that the BSA was going to submit
their financial report on time, and hoped that it would contain favourable
information.
Ms W Makgate (ANC) indicated that the Auditor-General’s report was very
disturbing regarding the managing of the financial problems. She stressed that
there should be a mechanism in place that both monitored the current situation
and ensured that problems did not recur.
Mr Mpofu stated that the change of the Chief Financial Officer had resulted in
a better situation, as the Board had had to play a more robust role. This had
also resulted in the Board being more closely engaged with monitoring.
Ms Makgate asked if BSA would be training and developing financial staff.
Mr Mpofu responded that steps were being taken to train the staff properly and
consultants were being used.
The Chairperson noted that the amalgamation of the provincial centres had
resulted in a loss of documents. There was no suggestion that the Chairperson
was at fault, but it was his responsibility to correct this issue. He asked
what steps had been taken by the Board to trace the documents.
Mr Mpofu responded that there was no question that there had been problems. The
Board accepted its responsibility and were not making excuses, but merely
giving the Committee an idea of the context and the inherited problems. New
training had been instituted to try to correct these problems.
The Chairperson appreciated the efforts the Board had gone through to turn
boxing around. However, he stressed that all its achievements should not be
lost through bad financial management.
Mr Mpofu stated that the quality of boxing had improved. Governance and finance
had had to be improved as the sporting side improvements were made. The major
problem with revenue was the lack of sponsorship. It was felt that the
Department of Sport and Recreation (SRSA) should put more money into boxing, as
this would improve the situation and would put the organisation on a more even
keel. This would also attract private sponsorship. Provinces would also
hopefully assist.
Mr M Dikgacwi referred to the report on the fixed assets and asked what
mechanisms were in place to ensure no loss of statements and to monitor the
current assets.
Mr Josh Steyn (Acting Chief Financial Officer: BSA) stated that he was
appointed on 1 November and had revamped and recaptured the financial accounts.
An internal auditor was appointed to assess the progress. Audit planning had
been performed over the past twelve days, and the audit should be finished on 4
June. He confirmed that there had been a physical check of all assets and a
numbering system had been implemented.
Mr Mpofu reiterated that matters were difficult, as BSA had not received the
funds promised by government yet.
The Chairperson expressed displeasure that BSA had not received the funding
that the Department had promised. He instructed Dr B Van Der Spuy, Director:
SRSA, to resolve the issue immediately. He asked how BSA had paid their CEO.
Mr Mpofu stated that he was paid from the little funds that BSA was holding.
The Chairperson asked that the Deputy Director of the SRSA must write a letter
informing the Committee of the steps it had taken in regard to the finances,
with a copy also to be sent to BSA.
Mr Mpofu commented that it was both illogical and untenable that BSA, being a
state institution, not be given what it required to function.
Mr B Solo (ANC) stated that the report was clear and the Committee could assess
the realistic nature of BSA. It must appreciate what had been done thus far. He
agreed that it was not realistic to expect an institution of the state to
perform to standard if the state did not provide the necessary tools. The
Department's lack of cooperation was embarrassing the government. He wanted to
know how BSA was going to deal with the issue of lack of sponsorship.
Mr Masango asked if the new CEO would be paid a higher remuneration, stating
that employees did not perform well if they were not properly compensated.
The Chairperson stated that the department was obliged to take full
responsibility for the salary for the CEO and agreed that such officers must be
paid appropriately.
Mr Mpofu stated that they BSA required extra assistance from the department
until it could reach a particular level.
Mr Masango also requested the reason why the other revenue had dropped.
Mr L Reid (ANC) commended the BSA on their improvement and asked why the
sponsors had left. If BSA had lost those sponsors due to the negative reports
from the Auditor-General over the past few years, then it could be assumed that
once BSA received a positive report from the Auditor General then the sponsors
would return.
Mr Reid asked if BSA had plans to engage new sponsorship.
Mr Mpofu stated that the lottery issue had become problematic, as the funds
from this source had already been assigned for training. This meant that BSA
had to dip even deeper into its reserves to assist with the training
programmes. He stated that BSA was doing a lot to attract new sponsors.
Mr Steyn stated that BSA had approached SABC, specifically the sport and
marketing departments, as they had to bring something to the table. When the
contract with Vodacom was structured it was a partnership that had entailed a
fair division of compensation. A partnership with SABC would envisage that each
year BSA would receive R1 million and SABC would receive R8 million. The SABC
marketing department would approach possible sponsors.
Mr Reid stated that at the public hearings in Durban the Committee was informed
of the fact that boxing in Kwazulu-Natal (KZN) was ruined. He asked if any
action had been taken to rectify the situation.
Mr Loyiso Myta, Public Relations Officer, BSA, stated that it was not only KZN
that had formerly been perceived as a boxing capital as the Eastern Cape was
included in that label. He stated that BSA took the ‘baby champs’ to all of the
provinces as they were obtaining increased support.
The Chairperson stated that it was an ongoing concern, as noted by the Auditor
General’s report, that sponsorship had been lost, which meant a drop in
revenue.
Mr Mpofu stated that if national government assisted more then this would
attract sponsors. Provincial government had been supportive. BSA’s popularity
had grown already as the crowds were coming back.
Mr Mtya stated that there was a need to differentiate between the two levels of
boxing, the development level and the national and international levels. He
stated that people were exposed to boxing through television. The reality was
that the fights screened on television showed boxers who had already managed to
do well for themselves. These fighters had good promoters and good
sponsorships. Boxing had declined since the last golden age of boxing because
there were no boxers with whom the public could identify.
The Chairperson stated that this was a result of bad planning and lack of
development.
Mr Mtya continued that people perceived boxing as a dying sport. The Board was
focused on the development stage through the programme ‘baby champs’. He stated
that the development stage of boxing was completely dependent on BSA as it was
BSA who paid these boxers, and not an outside sponsor. He stated that if the
government did not assist BSA with funding then boxing would fade. The ‘baby
champs’ would be starting up on 2 June. BSA had a sponsor who had thus far been
reliable. He stated that boxing should not only be promoted by way of financing
but by promotion of the sport itself.
Mr Dikgacwi commented on the point made by Mr Reid. He stated that one of the
issues was that in order to participate in amateur boxing, boxers had to come
to the big cities. The smaller areas should also receive recognition. Major
tournaments were also limited to big cities, although many of the boxers were
from the rural areas. Only a few well-known promoters were involved and he
queried where the other smaller promoters were.
Mr Mtya stated that BSA was developing the newcomer promoters as well, and had
linked them up to the government. They required government assistance to build
the provincial tournaments. The promoters played a crucial role in this
development.
Ms Makgate brought up the issue of female boxers and the fact that they lacked
promotion and support from the organisation. She stated that for big
tournaments female boxers could be curtain raisers and obtain well-deserved
exposure. She stated that female boxers required development.
Mr Mpofu stated that BSA were the first to hold a boxing tournament where all
the officials were female. BSA had created a regulation for promoters that if
female boxers were included in matches or tournament then added incentives
would apply.
Mr Mtya noted that the ‘baby champs’ included female boxers. The programme for
females had been around for two years. The ‘baby champs’ was all-inclusive, and
fights under this programme had gone all over the country. He also stated that
BSA had a joint venture ongoing with SABC regarding female boxers.
Mr Solo commented that youth were affected by lack of promotion of sport. He
stated that it would benefit society if boxing, in particular, were further
supported by the government. He stated that there seemed to be a lack of social
cohesion. There seemed to be too many political obstacles when boxing required
assistance.
Mr Masango asked for an explanation why it was stated in the Audit Report that
the strategic plan could not adhere to the budget. He wanted to know if BSA
first drew up the strategic plan and then the budget or first the budget and
then the strategic plan. He also requested both the strategic and budget plans
for the year.
Mr Mpofu stated that this statement was regrettably correct. He reminded the
Committee that the current board only came into being once the budget was
already established and had no power over it. However after this particular
year the strategic and budget plans were aligned and accounted for.
Mr Masango enquired about staff management and the fact that a general manager
was suspended. He asked if that suspended manager was still being paid.
Mr Mpofu stated that it would not be so difficult to revive boxing in the
country as boxing was one of the cheapest sports, which even poor people could
participate in, and which had the ability to bring hope to them. All that BSA
was requesting was a boost from the government until the sport had got on its
feet.
The Chairperson commented that the Committee must check the South African
Boxing Act and assess the role the department had to play. He noted the
overlapping issues that the Auditor-General had noted in the report.
Amendment to Strategic Plan of Department of Sport: SRSA Briefing
Dr Bernardus Van Der Spuy, Director SRSA, informed the Committee that a
few amendments had been made to the strategic plan after 20 March. At that
meeting the committee was told that there would not be any major changes to the
White Paper and Strategic Plan. However, subsequent to that there had been
three workshops involving senior management, middle management and the Minister
and Deputy Minister. All their input had been added to the White Paper. SRSA
had tried to add the Committee’s inputs to the Strategic Plan also, with the
added focus areas of amateur sport, mass participation, club development programmes
and school sport. The SRSA had also looked anew at their objectives in order to
complete their line function with regard to the FIFA World Cup 2010.
The revised Strategic Plan therefore included the programmes, specific
outcomes and outputs that had been aligned and consolidated, and also now
included the latest organisational structure. The Service Delivery improvement
plan was also included as part of the strategic plan. All of the work had been
aligned with the State of the Nation Address. All key role players would be
involved in updating the White Paper, which had a deadline of November 2007.
Once that was adopted the strategic plan would follow.
Discussion
The Chairperson stated it was pleasing to discover that the Department
had listened to the Committee’s input and added it to their strategic plan.
Mr Dikgacwi requested a copy of the revised strategic plan.
The meeting was adjourned.
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