South Africa's sports minister Fikile Mbalula says he's received threatening phone calls telling him not to investigate bonus payments made to Cricket South Africa (CSA) chief executive Gerald Majola.
Mbalula told a news conference he would not be deterred by the threats and was appointing a retired judge to investigate the matter.
He says he got the calls last night telling him to "get out of this cricket thing, to leave it alone because it would be very dangerous for him."
But Mbalula says he won't be threatened and will be decisive in acting against corruption adding if he were to turn a blind eye, Cricket South Africa would become a banana republic.
Auditors KPMG were appointed to look at bonuses paid to Majola and other CSA staff in connection with the staging of the Indian Premier League and ICC Champions Trophy tournaments in 2009.
The sports minister says he would name the retired judge and his terms of reference before the end of next week in a bid to bring conclusion to a matter that has plagued CSA since August 2010.
