The DA wants Minister of Tourism Patricia de Lille, to answer to the tourism portfolio committee about the resignation of key SA Tourism (SAT) board members.
In a statement, DA spokesperson for tourism, Haseena Ismail, said the party would be writing to the Tourism Committee chairperson, to get De Lille to appear before the committee for explanations on the recent developments.
The call comes just a week after De Lille instituted changes to the board following the departure of the chairperson, Makhosazana Khanyi and her deputy Advocate Lizelle Dominique Jordaan.
Early this year, three SAT board members, Enver Duminy, Ravi Nadasen and Rosemary Anderson resigned with immediate effect.
Ismail said the resignation of the former board chairperson and deputy chairperson was a cause for concern.
“The resignations of the former Board chairperson and deputy chairperson follow allegations of exorbitant expenditure. According to Minister De Lille, while the Board was allocated R1.44 million to hold meetings for the financial year, more than R900 000 has been spent, while only being halfway through the financial year. Minister De Lille’s account was provided through a media release, without informing the Committee,” Ismail said.
She added, “We therefore call on Minister De Lille and the Department’s appearance before Committee for full accounts on these events. Previously, when matters related to SA Tourism were dealt with outside of Parliamentary oversight, we witnessed the Tottenham Hotspur’s Sponsorship Scandal, where key actions were taken by the Board and then Minister, without Parliamentary oversight.”
Ismail said the atmosphere of instability at SAT was troubling given recent events which dented the image of the entity which last year came under media scrutiny following the botched Tottenham Hotspur deal.
“The ongoing instability on SAT is especially troubling, considering that the new Board was introduced last year, after the Hotspur’s scandal, and also given that SAT accounts for 53.3% (R4.1 billion) of the department’s budget, making it central to the recovery and growth of the tourism sector.
“While we seek full details on recent events at SA Tourism, we urge the Board and the minister to work collaboratively in restoring stability within the entity, as SAT plays a vital role in driving growth and investment in the tourism sector.
“While our country still recovers from the economic impact of Covid-19, the tourism sector has the potential to stimulate much-needed investment and job creation. However, this requires that SAT operates with effective leadership, proper financial management, and full accountability,” she said.
The Star