A fan asked me to comment on what is meant by a title unification bout in boxing.
He wondered how Esther Phiri and Sandra Almeida are set to fight for the WBF and WIBA welterweight title unification when the titles are vacant.
Both boxers are not champions of different governing bodies either. It has been reported that WIBA president Ryan Wissow and WBF president Howard Goldberg have confirmed the bout.
From my understanding, based on the four major sanctioning bodies-the WBC, WBA, IBF and WBO, a unification bout is a fight between two fighters who hold different belts (titles) under the jurisdiction of two different governing bodies. But according to clause 1.6 of the WIBA championship rules, WIBA “encourages title unification.” The WBF is silent on this.
But let me turn to this week’s topic. National Milling Company once became synonymous with boxing through the company’s visible corporate social responsibility (CSR) programme by bankrolling Esther’s fights.
Lately, however, Oriental Quarries has emerged as the successor to National Milling as it sponsors Oriental Quarries Boxing Stables with its operations director Chris Malunga playing a leading role in executing the company’s CSR programme.
This past week I was among the press corps   invited to a Press briefing held at the head office of Scirocco Enterprises Limited, trading as Oriental Quarries Limited on the outskirts of Lusaka in the Makeni area.
Company managing director Moustafa Saad announced plans to set up a US$200 million state- of -the art cement factory with a 50,000 bags production capacity per day and about 500 jobs to be created during the construction phase.
For a company boasting a strong footprint on promotion of good corporate citizenship through sponsorship of boxing, one would have thought this massive investment would further upscale sponsorship of not only boxing, but other sports disciplines as well.
When I asked Saad if boxing would benefit more from the upcoming investment, he said Oriental Quarries would continue to sponsor sport with or without the new investment, Amaka Cement Industries, coming on board. He said the new company would determine its own CSR programmes later.
But a look at what’s on the table already as far as CSR programmes are concerned, suggests Oriental Quarries is showing the way in taking care of not only its employees, but its sportsmen and women, especially the boxers.
At the same briefing, Malunga said the company had decided to build World Boxing Council (WBC) female silver bantamweight champion Catherine Phiri a block of two flats on her plot she bought from her earnings from the ring.
The company would use 100 per cent company materials it manufactures to build the structure. This follows Malunga’s advice to the young boxer to invest her money wisely.
“We are going to provide roofing, cement, blocks, windows, wardrobes, tiles, paving tiles and other materials manufactured here and some (materials) will come from our hardware shop in town,” Malunga said. You would think that’s all the company was doing for her.
The company has been paying her rentals for about a year now for a house in Kabwata Site and Service, sent her to school (she has since passed her grade nine) and it meets her educational expenses, let alone paying monthly boxing and transport allowances when there are no boxing tournaments.
The company would appear to be generous to a fault because Catherine is by no means the only beneficiary from the company’s CSR programmes. It has absorbed retired boxers like Mable Mulenga and Moses Musonda into the workforce.
Boxers Barbara Banda, Davy Mwale and Alfred Muwowo among others are also attending school, courtesy of Oriental Quarries which is meeting their expenses.
The company’s philosophy, Malunga explained, is to encourage youngsters to take the sport seriously, but warns that “we expect those who are with us to be disciplined otherwise we part company.”
The company is also assisting the Zambia Boxing Federation pay its affiliation fees to the National Sports Council of Zambia.
Comments: mwale.simon@yahoo.co.uk / 0966 755 574/0953744074