The Lottery has stopped a grant for the lavishly funded annual SATMA awards. Illustration: Lisa Nelson (SATMA brand superimposed above primary illustration)
From 2019 to 2022 the South African Regular Music Awards obtained above R16-million in the Lottery.
Nevertheless the Lottery has withheld payment from the 2023 grant following an investigation.
The NLC has requested the Unique Investigating Device to probe alleged “double dipping” in many years wherever funders apart from the NLC also chipped in that will help fund the awards.
The size of funding for the yearly two night function is astonishing.
The Mpumalanga government has funded the awards with about R41-million right after it “was awarded the correct” to host the SATMA awards for 3 many years, starting from the 2020/21 monetary yr.
This has long been Together with Lottery funding.
The Nationwide Lotteries Commission (NLC) is refusing to pay a R1.two-million grant it in the beginning accepted for an annual classic tunes awards ceremony. A similar celebration also obtained tens of millions of rand within the Mpumalanga provincial governing administration.
From 2019 to 2022 the NLC awarded quite a few grants totalling Pretty much R16.4-million for the Mageza Heritage Basis, the organisers on the annual South African Classic Songs Awards (SATMA).
But it halted the payment of a 2023 grant just after an internal investigation.
GroundUp has uncovered enormous corruption while in the NLC that befell until finally the preceding board and administration was changed in 2022. The new NLC leadership is trying to thoroughly clean up the corruption on the earlier.
The NLC’s investigation centered on the two the 2023 funding and earlier grants awarded to Mageza to phase the awards. The investigation also probed a payment of around R718,000, allegedly paid from Lottery funds to G4 Brothers, of which Dumisani Gobe, the founder of the SATMA awards, is actually a director.
Asked if Mageza compensated G4 a licencing or some other expenses to stage the awards, Goba said: “G4 was commissioned to do a manufacture of the party and received paid out for the people providers, like to control and produce the key function, roadshows, and many others. I'm the founding father of the SATMA Awards; I'm the just one who must be compensated for producing the notion determined by affordability and what Mageza decides.”
The NLC has handed a dossier of its investigation towards the Unique Investigating Device (SIU). It's requested the SIU to investigate four distinct lottery-funded projects that been given grants amongst Oct 2020 and May 2023, as well as the payment to G4 Brothers.
The NLC has also asked the SIU to probe alleged “double dipping” in several years where by funders apart from the NLC also chipped in to help you fund the awards.
This features a grant of R400,000 through the Nationwide Heritage Council and just about R62,000 from “SABC Cell” in 2020 - a similar monetary year by which the occasion received Nearly R2.6-million in lottery funding and R13.five-million through the Mpumalanga Division of Culture, Sporting activities and Recreation (MDCSR).
MDCSR funded the awards to your tune of in excess of R41-million soon after it “was awarded the proper” to host the SATMA awards for 3 a long time, commencing inside the 2020/21 economical year.
The Mpumalanga govt’s funding for SATMA over that period was considerably bigger than grants to every other organisation for cultural assignments and gatherings.
The MDSCR gave R3.five-million to SATMA during the 2019/twenty financial year before ramping up its contribution following signing the agreement to host the awards over another 3 several years.
The entire spending budget submitted into the NLC when Mageza utilized for the disputed 2023 SATMA funding was R1.two-million. But of the, only R500,000 was allocated for the particular staging in the party. Other line objects in the finances integrated R400,000 for “personnel salaries and Added benefits”, R200,000 for “stipends” and R100,000 for “travel.”
The awards had been held on 15 December for the Durban Intercontinental สลาก กิน Convention Centre. Mageza claims it urgently requirements the blocked grant to pay for the event’s provider vendors.
The SATMA awards, which had been initially held in 2006, are staged over two nights and it truly is unclear how the tens of tens of millions in grants in the NLC, MDCSR and also other funders ended up used.
Desmond Msomi, the chairman of Mageza, didn't reply to distinct inquiries from GroundUp, including the cost of staging a SATMA awards ceremony.
Rather, he stated: “Your questions are pointed out. Having said that, we are suggested from the NLC this make a difference is being investigated because of the SIU. Consequently, we cannot respond to your issues until finally we have been encouraged that the investigation has become done and the quantity owed continues to be paid out to Mageza.”
Immediately after Mpumalanga “received the ideal” to host the awards for 3 decades, the then provincial Society, Activity and Recreation MEC, Lindiwe Ntshalintshali, described it as “a boon” for your province.
“Hosting the SATMA Awards has good financial spinoffs for that Mpumalanga coffers and In addition it talks to your Division’s mandate of marketing social cohesion.”