By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Former Sekhukhune United head coach Lehlohonolo Seema has been appointed as Siwelele Football Club head coach, with Andre Arendse as his assistant.
“From us, to you. We’re proud to announce Lehlohonolo Seema as the new Head Coach of Siwelele Football Club. A new chapter begins,” read a post on the club’s official X account.
Seema has been out of employment since parting ways with Sekhukhune United back in March.The 45-year-old has also previously coached Golden Arrows, Polokwane City and Chippa United.
Siwelele was Bloemfontein Celtic’s nickname, with the new club attempting to draw links with the team that once captured the hearts of a city and had supporters donning its green and white colours across the country.
However, Bloemfontein Celtic themselves are not making a return, and opinions are split over whether or not Siwelele’s potential entry into the top-flight marks a true revival for the fanbase.
Marumo Gallants are already playing in Bloemfontein without the backing Celtic once boasted, while ownership of the name ‘Bloemfontein Celtic’ is in the hands of businessman Edward Modise.
Siwelele was awarded the rights to purchase the three-time Premiership winners Supersport United to a region of R50 million.
Minister of Sports, Arts & Culture Gayton McKenzie’s son, Calvyn Le’John (29), is the owner of Siwelele FC.
McKenzie has added credence to rumours that the purchase price of the club was around R50 million, saying: “I think so,” regarding whether or not that was correct.
McKenzie pledged that his son would invest R400 million into building a “football city” in Bloemfontein. He was quoted as saying: “He’s also putting in R400 million to build a football city in Bloemfontein.
Le’John is listed as a director of Anaconda Vape, XConcepts Publications and Mangaung Chicken Consortium. As per the CIPC, McKenzie resigned as a director of XConcepts last August, shortly after being appointed as a minister.
McKenzie was convicted of armed robbery in the mid-1990s. He rose to prominence for his role in exposing prison corruption shortly prior to his 2003 release.
He was one of the “Grootvlei Four” who secretly filmed a video inside Grootvlei Prison showing evidence of prison warders enabling the sexual abuse of juveniles, purchasing chickens stolen from the prison kitchen, selling drugs and weapons to prisoners and drinking alcohol with them.
This exposé was instrumental to the Jali Commission of Inquiry into corruption and maladministration within South Africa’s Department of Correctional Services.
After his release, McKenzie became a businessman and motivational speaker, and he co-founded the Patriotic Alliance in 2013 – serving as its president since then. Last year, they became part of South Africa’s Government of National Unity after the ruling African National Congress lost its majority and turned to smaller parties for help forming a government.
Meanwhile Kaizer Chiefs founder, Kaizer Motaung, said PSL must tighten the rules on the selling and buying of club status.
As the architect of one of Africa’s most iconic football clubs, Motaung’s insights carry weight, especially in an era where financial instability has led to the untimely demise of several teams within the league.
In a bold statement that resonates with both the challenges and potential of South African football, Motaung said that the volatility of club status transactions is detrimental to the integrity and sustainability of the game.
This directly references the fate of clubs like Wits, Royal AM which faced financial hardships that eventually led to their sale and subsequent disappearance from the league structure.