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The Democratic Alliance (DA) is calling on the Premier, Dr Zamani Saul, to hand over information relating to a government sponsored festival that never took place, and a related irregular appointment made at the Department of Sports, Arts and Culture, to the Special Investigating Unit (SIU).

The matter relates to the wasteful and fruitless payment of R1.6 million made to the Traffic Events Management Company in December 2016, for the Umsobomvu Youth Festival in Norvalspont, and the wrongful appointment of the director of sport and recreation.

Previously, the Office of the Premier established a task team and commissioned a report that implicated three senior managers. Months later, the department continues to harbor the three implicated officials. No disciplinary action was taken against them despite the report instructing that action be taken for both the wrongful appointment and the recouping of the R1.6 million, with interest.

MEC Desery Fienies has also yet to present her implementation plan to remediate actions in governance, administration, human resource and financial management within the department, in relation to the report.

Last month, during questions posed by the DA, the MEC committed to submit a written response and to follow-up on the matter with the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA). This follows recommendations by the Office of the Public Protector that the matter be investigated by the Hawks, after they received an anonymous complaint in 2020.

Finies has yet to provide feedback or present her implementation plan. Following her complete disregard for enforcing accountability within the department, the Premier needs to take the lead and urgently exercise his duty as the executive of this province, to ensure that corruption within the department is rooted out.

The DA has submitted a letter to the Premier, requesting that the report be handed over to the SIU, as it is doubtful, given the failure of the department to follow the Premier’s instructions to act against the involved officials, that the department would have acted in response to recommendations made by the Office of the Public Protector to hand the matter over to the Hawks.

The DA will not tolerate a lack of accountability by this department at the expense of artists, sportsmen and women, where public funds are involved and where service delivery continues to be compromised by the department’s failure to act firmly against corruption.

Issued by Priscilla Isaacs, MPL - Alternative Spokesperson on Sports Arts and Culture