SIU launches investigation into embattled SA Tourism Board

The Special Investigating Unit (SIU) has been granted approval to investigate allegations of serious maladministration and improper conduct in the affairs of the South African Tourism Board (SA Tourism).

SA Tourism is a public national marketing agency of the South African government, with the goal of marketing tourism in the country, with a R1.3 billion budget allocation.

Signed by President Cyril Ramaphosa, the proclamation empowers the SIU to investigate allegations of irregularities in the procurement of media buying services linked to three specific invoices and purchase orders.

It will also focus on payments made for services that were not rendered between March 1, 2020, and November 21, 2025.

City Press recently reported on allegations of irregularities in awarding a tender worth over R100 million.

The company, Pomme Express, which was awarded the bid to organise Meetings Africa and Africa’s Travel Indaba 2025, faced claims of falsified documents and cronyism.

The scandal worsened when corruption allegations emerged after spending around R10 million on audit reports.

“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,” said SIU spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago.

“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.”

The SIU will examine possible violations of relevant legislation, including any instructions or guidelines issued by the National Treasury.

It will also review whether SA Tourism’s procurement processes complied with internal manuals, policies, and procedures, particularly in cases where payments were made for services that were never delivered.

The Unit is further mandated to probe any unauthorised, irregular, or fruitless and wasteful expenditure incurred by the Board or the State, with a focus on payments for undelivered media-buying services.

It extends to any irregular, unlawful, or improper conduct by SA Tourism officials, employees, suppliers, service providers, or any other parties implicated in the alleged media-buying scheme.

In September, De Lille told Parliament that she was writing a letter to the President urging him to authorise a probe into the affairs of the entity.

In a statement on 24 November, the Minister welcomed the investigation, calling it an important step towards maintaining stability and fiscal responsibility.

“Good governance is not optional. It is the foundation of an accountable state and a credible tourism sector,” said De Lille.

“We cannot attract investment, grow our visitor numbers or build confidence in South Africa’s tourism institutions if public funds are mismanaged.”

Democratic Alliance spokesperson on Tourism, Haseena Ismail, had a very different view.

Ismail called the announced probe “a long-overdue step, and one the DA has been calling for as SAT has lurched from crisis to crisis under De Lille’s mismanagement.”

SA Tourism board dissolved

In August, Minister Patricia De Lille dissolved the SA Tourism Board, citing unlawful meetings, resolutions, and fiscal breaches.

This follows the board’s decision on 14 August to place its CEO, Nombulelo Guliwe, on precautionary suspension, citing allegations of serious financial misconduct.

Legal advice to the minister said that only the Chairperson may call such a meeting, yet the board proceeded despite the resignation of Chairperson Professor Gregory Davids.

According to the Minister, this meant the board “acted unlawfully and ultra vires its powers,” adding that she had previously warned the board about the consequences of failing to follow proper governance procedures.

“This undermines the integrity of the board and could render outcomes from such meetings procedurally invalid and unlawful,” she said.

Ismail alleged that the “decision to dissolve the SAT Board, while shielding the very executive implicated in wasteful expenditure, accelerated the collapse in governance.”

“She ignored warnings, disrupted Auditor-General processes, and refused to release key reports. All while SAT haemorrhaged public money and public trust.”

In a recent parliamentary hearing regarding the matter, De Lille was firm in her opposition to the characterisations that she was protecting the CEO.

She said that she lamented the board’s failure to act on the complaints by the company secretary against the CEO.

“I detest corruption. I am firm on clean governance,” said the minister. “It’s not the first time my integrity has been questioned,” she said.

De Lille said that 25 years ago, she came under attack with allegations of corruption that she had famously brought forward regarding the shady arms deal case. 

SA Tourism board woes

The dissolution marks the latest in a series of governance crises at SA Tourism.

In 2024, De Lille removed Chairperson Makhosazana Khanyile and Deputy Chairperson Lizelle Haskins over what she called an “excessive number of meetings.”

By September that year, the board had already held 54 meetings, consuming 63% (R900,000) of its annual R1.44 million meeting budget.

Both Khanyile and Haskins resigned soon after and threatened legal action against the Minister.

Just a year earlier, in 2023, De Lille dissolved the previous Board after its controversial R910 million sponsorship deal with Tottenham Hotspur drew widespread backlash.

She cited concerns about the board’s conduct, composition and lack of expertise, later appointing an interim three-person Board to stabilize the entity.

Governance problems persisted into 2024 and 2025, when SA Tourism faced allegations of tender irregularities in awarding a R100 million contract for major trade shows.

The Auditor-General also flagged a R24.1 million budget overspend and weak internal controls, with the agency achieving only 89% of its performance targets.