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Charles Manyuchi

Sports Reporter
WORLD Boxing Council welterweight champion Charles Manyuchi is misdirected and out of order for refusing to pay duty for the trophy he won in Italy in July, an official in the Ministry of Sport, Arts and Culture has said.

Manyuchi refused to pay duty and his trophy was confiscated by customs officials at the Harare International Airport.

He won the trophy after defeating Italian Gianluca Frezza in the sixth round of their scheduled 12-round bout.

The trophy was released later and Manyuchi took it to a banquet that President Robert Mugabe hosted for the pugilist at State House.

Customs officials only released the trophy on condition that the boxer surrendered his passport as surety for paying duty.

“Manyuchi wants to be treated as a special case. Everyone has to pay duty if required and there’s nothing special about him.

“Why does he want the law to be bent just for him?” said the official.

“His passport will only be released once he pays what’s due to customs as laid down in our statutes. The President recently gave him $50,000 so why doesn’t he pay what he owes?”

The official said waiving duty for Manyuchi would set a wrong precedence that would be hard to control in future.

“The nation is very proud of his achievement because he put Zimbabwe on the international stage, but we’re still a country with laws that must be followed, and laws can’t be bent to accommodate one individual.”

Manyuchi’s Zambian manager Chris Malunga said he would only be in a position to comment on the matter when he gets to Zambia today.

“I can’t comment about that now until I get back to the office,” said Malunga.

Manyuchi yesterday declined to reveal how much duty he has been charged. His handlers are said to have approached the Office of the President and Cabinet in a bid to have his passport released, but the matter was referred back to the Ministry of Sport, Arts and Culture.

Manyuchi and his handlers have been at loggerheads with Ministry officials.

His father and trainer Ottis blasted the boxing board for its “lack of support” for boxing.

He claimed his son would be a bigger boxer internationally had he been supported by local boxing authorities.