Africa-Press – South-Africa. Tourism Minister Patricia de Lille has given the SA Tourism board until next week to say why she should not dissolve it in the wake of “serious allegations” against its members.
She wrote the letter to board chairperson Thozamile Botha on 6 April.
Department of Tourism spokesperson Zara Nicholson would not confirm to News24 if the letter was about the scrapped deal between SA Tourism and Tottenham Hotspur.
“I will not engage with the board or engage on the matter through the media as I have given them until 18 April to respond to my letter. I will make further comments once I have received a response as requested on 18 April,”De Lille said.
The Mail & Guardian reported Botha and three other board members resigned on Monday, pending their suspension and dismissal by the minister.
A source told the publication among the reasons De Lille cited for the possible dissolution of the board were the R900 million proposed deal, the irregular appointment of Botha and three board members, and sexual harassment allegations against two board members.
The irregular appointment claims followed the resignation of three board members in February – Enver Duminy, Ravi Nadasen and Rosemary Anderson – who were said to be against the Spurs deal.
Then-tourism minister Lindiwe Sisulu, within 24 hours, appointed three new members to serve on the board, however, the DA and others said this was unlawful. Sisulu and the tourism board defended these appointments at the time.
When contacted for comment on Tuesday, Botha told News24 he did not wish to confirm nor deny his resignation.
As previously reported by News24, De Lille had written to Botha, asking whether the board had formally cancelled the deal and asked for written proof. The minister also asked whether the board followed a competitive procurement process.
She said:
SA Tourism came under fire in February when the Daily Maverick reported that it proposed a three-year deal worth £42.5 million (about R900 million) with Spurs starting at the beginning of the 2023/24 English Premier League season and ending at the end of the 2026/27 season.
In return, SA Tourism would receive kit branding, interview backdrop branding, match-day advertising, partnership announcements, training camps in South Africa, and free access to tickets and stadium hospitality.
Last month, De Lille announced a decision to scrap the “unlawful and invalid” deal.
She said the public funds needed to be used sparingly given the country’s economic state.
The response by SA Tourism’s board at the time was that there was no “unlawful and invalid” Tottenham Hotspur transaction to be cancelled since an in-principle decision had only ever existed.
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