The National Council of Sports (NCS) in Uganda has said the government of Germany has threatened to stop issuing visas to Ugandan boxers to take part in competitions in their country.
Three Ugandan boxers who participated in the 2017 AIBA World Championship in Hamburg disappeared and refused to return home.
John Bosco Onyik, Board Chairman of the National Council of Sports, told KweséESPN on Monday that they have already been told by the Germany Embassy that it could stop giving visas to Ugandan boxers.
"We got communications from the Germany Embassy saying they will stop giving visas to boxers if they keep disappearing in their country when they travel for competitions," Onyik said.
The three Ugandan boxers who vanished after the AIBA World Championship last year were David Ayiti, Geoffrey Kakeeto and African welterweight champion Muzamiru Kakande.
But Onyik has made it clear that although the Germany Embassy has written to them, it has also asked the Uganda Boxing Federation (UBF) to explain why they always have a boxer disappear when a team travels.
"Two boxers disappeared in Germany last year, another at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games and recently a junior boxer vanished in Hungary. We have asked the Federation to give proper explanation because we are going to take hash measures against them," Onyik said.
Moses Muhangi, president of the federation, told KweséESPN, however, that officials had continued to lecture the boxers and advised them never to disappear when away on duty for the national team.
"It is also bothering us because it gives very poor public relations when our boxers vanish," Muhangi said.
"But we are going to put in place strict measures and perhaps also ensure that officials move with the boxers everywhere they go when out of the country."
Boxing remains one of Uganda's best medal-winning sporting disciplines alongside athletics.