Simon Nare
Tourism Minister Patricia de Lille has welcomed President Cyril Ramaphosa’s proclamation authorising the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) to investigate allegations of maladministration and corruption in South African Tourism.
The minister said she was pleased that the request she made in a letter to Ramaphosa earlier this year, calling for an investigation into the allegations, had been granted.
“This is an important step towards maintaining stability and ensuring that every rand allocated to tourism is used to grow the sector, support jobs and strengthen South Africa’s allure globally,” she said.
The SIU, in a press statement on Monday, said the president had signed the proclamation to investigate serious maladministration and improper conduct in the affairs of the entity and its board, and to recover financial losses suffered by the state.
“Proclamation 297 of 2025 empowers the SIU to investigate allegations of the procurement of media buying services linked to three specific invoices and purchase orders, as well as payments made for services that were not rendered.
“The investigation will focus on contracts where media buying services were paid for but either not delivered or not fully executed as stipulated in the agreements.
The investigation will determine whether the media buying contracts and related payments were conducted in a manner that was not fair, competitive, transparent, equitable, or cost-effective,” said SIU spokesman Kaizer Kganyago in the statement.
The entity has been hit by several scandal in recent times, with the latest being a report by City Press of irregularities in awarding a tender worth R100 million.
The weekend paper reported that the company Pomme Express was awarded a tender for a contract to organise Meetings Africa and Africa Travel Indaba 2025, allegedly with falsified documents and involving cronyism.
In 2023, SAT came under heavy criticism for its controversial R910 million sponsorship deal with English Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur. That led to De Lille dissolving the board that approved the deal. The deal was later cancelled following the minister’s intervention.
Kganyago said in the statement that the unit will examine potential violations of the law and the guidelines or instructions issued by National Treasury, and assess whether procurement adhered to internal manuals, policies, and procedures of SA Tourism, particularly payments for services that were not rendered.
“The Unit is mandated to investigate any related unauthorised, irregular, or fruitless and wasteful expenditure incurred by the Board or the State, with specific attention to payments made for media buying services that were not delivered.
“The scope of the investigation includes any irregular, unlawful, or improper conduct by officials or employees of SA Tourism, the applicable suppliers or service providers, and any other person or entity involved in the alleged scheme involving media buying and services not rendered,” Kganyago said.
The probe will cover the period from 1 March 2020 and 21 November 2025. Any conduct relevant or connected to that period will be looked into and thereafter, evidence will be handed over to the National Prosecuting Authority.
“The SIU is also authorised to initiate civil proceedings in the High Court or a Special Tribunal in its name to correct any wrongdoing uncovered during its investigation and to recover financial losses suffered by the State, including funds paid for services not rendered,” Kganyago said.
De Lille said good governance was not optional for state entities. “It is the foundation of an accountable state and a credible tourism sector. We cannot attract investment, grow our visitor numbers or build confidence in South Africa’s tourism institutions if public funds are mismanaged,” she said.
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