International boxing sensation, Charles Manyuchis sports academy in Chivhu has suffered still birth after Chikomba Rural District Council (RDC) failed to deliver title deeds for the 2.5-hectare land it donated to the boxer for the purpose.
A frustrated Manyuchi told The Mirror in an interview that he has been waiting for the last five years to get title deeds
to the US$50 000 land without success.
He said that the delay in getting the deeds has frustrated
investors and stalled development of Charles Manyuchi Sports Academy. The
matter has since been raised with the Ministry of Sports and President
Mnangagwa.
The problem is that after offering the boxer the land for
free in recognition of his success and putting Chivhu on the map, the new
administration at Chikomba RDC is now demanding to get into joint venture with
Manyuchi as a condition for releasing the title deeds.
Chivhu RDC CEO Bulen Chiwara said they were into
partnership with Manyuchi.
“Manyuchi was offered land for a Sport Academy in partnership
with the rural district council and he cannot ask for title deeds to go it
alone.
” One partner cannot have title deeds for the ownership of
council land and this I want to set a record straight that Manyuchi should come
and have a partnership for the development of this Sport Academy,” he said.
Chikomba Rural District council chairman Israel Dhikinya
said Manyuchi lacked advisors to enlighten him on the issue of partnership.
” He is in partnership with us and on that account, he
cannot ask for title deeds when we are working together.
” He needs to get advice, the Sport Academy is not for
himself and as such we need it to be developed from the two of us,”Dhikinya
said.
This land was offered to me publicly and openly. All the
who is who in Chivhu were present including former MP for Chikomba West Mike
Bimha, all Chikomba traditional leadership and the full council. This was on
July 23, 2016 and they are still to give me the title deeds five years later.
A letter seen by The Mirror shows that the late Chikomba
CEO Luckson Mutara offered the stand to Manyuchi through a letter dated June
17, 2016.
“…The price of land is US$45 000, service charges for water
and sewer reticulation amount to US$5 000. The total cost of the land offered
together with its service charges is $50 000.
You are however being offered this land free of charge…”
reads part of the letter.
Manyuchi was given the land after he won the vacant World
Boxing Council Silver Welterweight title by knocking out Russian Dimitry
Mikhaylenko on May 6 the same year.
He held the prestigious belt until March 25, 2017 when he
was beaten by Qudratillo Abduqaxorov of Uzbekistan in Singapore. Manyuchi
currently holds the WPBF, WBF and the WABA titles from this year’s match.
On July 3, 2021 he beat Muhamad Sebyala of Uganda in a WBF
middleweight title fight held at the Flamboyant Hotel in Masvingo.
“A lot of investors who wanted to help to construct the
academy have backed off after I failed to get the title deeds. We could have
completed this academy by now and hundreds of youths would be benefitting from
it.
“A change of management at the RDC has affected the project.
The new management is shifting the goalposts and demanding partnership on a
piece of land I was given as a reward for my good work,” said Manyuchi.
“The current CEO is the one who wrote the letter to me when
he was still Human Resources Manager but he is changing goalposts now,” he
added. Masvingo Mirror
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