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Minister of Public Enterprises confirms state entities spent R48 million oin World Cup tickets in reply to DA question
State entities ignored circular from Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan
Total of R145 million spent on World Cup tickets tracked by DA's Wasteful Expenditure Monitor

The Minister of Public Enterprises has today confirmed in response to a DA parliamentary question that a total of R48 million was spent by state entities falling under that Department on World Cup tickets. Our Wasteful Expenditure Monitor has now tracked a total of R145 million spent on World Cup tickets and other sports events.

Minister Gordhan has rightly labelled the use of state funds on World Cup tickets as wasteful and fruitless expenditure. In a letter I received in early June, the Minister was explicit in his recommendation that municipalities, provincial departments and national departments should refrain from spending public money on World Cup tickets. He pointed out that such spending contravenes provisions in the Public Finance Management Act and the Code of Conduct for Public Servants.

The letter that I received from Minister Gordhan, dated 7 June, stated:

"Even though the circular [to municipalities from the Treasury] was not sent to national departments, the same principles apply given the provisions regarding financial misconduct, irregular expenditure and fruitless and wasteful expenditure in the Public Finance Management Act as well as the provisions in the Code of Conduct for Public Servants."

According to the parliamentary replies received today, the following state owned enterprises spent money on World Cup tickets and other events:

Transnet

· R 13 million spent on 962 World Cup tickets for ‘stakeholders', including government officials (revealed today)
· R 350 000 spent on 170 tickets to the Cape Town International Jazz Festival. Tickets were allocated to employees and ‘stakeholders', including government officials (revealed today)
· R 1 million spent on 480 tickets to the 2009 Nedbank Golf Challenge. Tickets were allocated to employees and ‘stakeholders', including government officials (revealed today)
· R 36 000 spent on 26 tickets to various rugby fixtures in July 2009. Tickets were allocated to employees and ‘stakeholders', including government officials (revealed today)

SAA

· R 23 million spent on 1633 tickets to the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Tickets were allocated employees and ‘stakeholders', including government officials

Eskom

· R 12 million spent on 1080 tickets to the 2010 FIFA World Cup, including 670 top-drawer ‘hospitality tickets' for Eskom executives and ‘stakeholders'
· R 18 000 spent on 212 tickets to the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup for ‘key customers and stakeholders' (revealed today)

Denel

· R 60 000 spent on 462 tickets to various rugby and soccer fixtures between January 2009 and May 2010. Tickets were allocated to officials from the departments of Defence and Military Veterans, Trade & Industry, International Relations and Cooperation and the South African Police Service (revealed today)


Given the dire financial situation facing many of our country's State Owned Entities (SOEs), many of which, like Eskom, provide essential services that affect the lives of millions of ordinary South Africans, it is unconscionable that R 48 million of public funds could continue to be wasted on providing personal entertainment for high-earning SOE executives, their ‘stakeholders' and cronies in the ANC administration.

Many of these SOEs have recently imposed significant cost increases on consumers and taxpayers: in last year's budget, SAA was bailed out the tune of R1,6bn by South African taxpayers and Eskom's rising costs have this year resulted in massive hikes in consumers' electricity bills
I have written to the Minister of Finance on several occasions requesting that he explain steps he will be taking to ensure that national Cabinet ministers who are responsible for irregular spending are held to account as well as what measures he will be putting in place to prevent such spending from occurring in the future.