Ubayd Haider, aka Nathan Singh. Photo: Facebook / Ubaid Haidar
Australia-based boxing promoter Freddy Chand has confirmed that he has not been interviewed by the Fiji Boxing Inquiry team, which was set up to investigate the death of the late Ubayd Haider.
Chand told RNZ Pacific from Sydney he had asked the team, led by local lawyer Ed Wainiqolo, that he wanted his lawyer to be present if he were to be interviewed.
"My lawyer is still waiting for the inquiry team to interview me," Chand said in response to questions sent to him.
"The chairman is misleading [the] public. He was told by my lawyer, Mr Roopesh Singh, to interview me with him (lawyer) on [my] side."
Chand promoted the boxing title fight in Nadi in October last year, which featured Haider against Australia's Runqi Zhou.
Haider lost by technical knockout during the IBO Asia Pacific Super Featherweight title fight in Nadi and later collapsed outside the ring.
He was rushed to Nadi Hospital and fell into an induced coma before he died in November at Lautoka Aspen Hospital.
Fiji's Sports Minister Jese Saukuru, who had commissioned Wainiqolo and his team to investigate the incident, told the Fijian parliament last week that the investigation had been completed.
He said the inquiry found that the absence of an ambulance on site was a contributing factor to the boxer's condition worsening, as he was not given the necessary medical attention initially.
Wainiqolo told RNZ Pacific that they did not interview Chand, adding the promoter had genuine reasons.
But Chand said he was waiting for the team to interview him so he could give his side of the story.
Haider's elder brother, Sebastian Singh, had also questioned Saukuru and Wainiqolo's announcements.
He said the investigation has not been completed because Chand was not interviewed.
Court action
In another development, Chand has confirmed that he has a court case against the Boxing Commission of Fiji (BCF)
He said the case is to challenge his suspension by the BCF, which had suspended his license to promote boxing in Fiji.
BCF chairman Adi Narayan has also confirmed the court challenge, scheduled to be heard at the Lautoka High Court on May 27.
He said the BCF has its rules and regulations, which it had followed in handing out the suspension.
Narayan said it was not the first time Chand had been suspended by the BCF, and the promoter had been allowed back to promoting for the October 2024 program.
"He is challenging the suspension and got a lawyer to ask the High Court for a judicial review," Narayan said.
"That's all it matters. There's no fight. When you break the rules you face the consequences."
Wilson's call
Meanwhile, former BCF vice president and renowned Fijian boxing trainer Lepani Wilson said from Sydney on Tuesday that he wants to know if there has been any serious probe into allegations that Haider had been admitted at a Sydney hospital because of brain damage.
Wilson said the investigation team should have looked into the claims.
"That is a serious issue, and the investigation team should have looked at that," he said.
"I mean, if there was any truth in that, then I would suggest that an investigation be done on who allowed the guy to fight again and why."
Wilson said, as a trainer, he would not allow any boxer who had been admitted to hospital because of brain damage to fight again.
"We have to make sure that it is safety fist, that life matters," he added.
The Commission of Inquiry set up to probe the circumstances surrounding the death Haider said it will only work with evidence.
Wainiqolo told RNZ Pacific in January that they had not investigated the claims, adding no one had approached them with concrete evidence.
There were social media reports sharing a medical report allegedly detailing the late boxer's admission and release from Liverpool Hospital in Sydney in November 2023.
"There is a lot of reports going on within the social media forums, particularly in terms of the demise of the boxer," he said.
"But we've encouraged all parties that if they had substantive evidence pertaining to this death or anything that actually contributed or aggravated towards this demise they should actually come forward with it and produce it with us.
"We will not be able to rely on third-party evidence. Our report is actually based on the record of interview conducted with everyone in person directly."
Sydney-based Alexandra Forewood, who is of Fijian heritage, told RNZ Pacific she had obtained the medical report.
Forwood, a former Fiji resident, has been vocal on Fiji's political issues.
She said a copy of the report was sent to Minister Saukuru, who acknowledged her email.
She said the report was genuine, and the inquiry team "was a shambles when it does not address the real issue and make serious recommendations."
"It was essentially a white wash. I had obtained it and send it out," she said.
"I had forwarded it to the Minister."
According to the report, Haider was admitted in early November 2023 with suspected subdural haemorrhage and severe headaches following sparring sessions he was involved in.
RNZ Pacific reached out to Liverpool Hospital to verify the report but was advised that the hospital could not divulge patient's information to a third party.
When asked about the report, promoter Chand said the family should not have allowed Haider to fight if they knew that he was not fit to fight.
