The DA has submitted further information to the Public Protector (PP) as part of an investigation into Gayton McKenzie, the Minister for Sport, Arts and Culture, and his alleged breach of his oath of office.
Leah Potgieter, the DA's spokesperson on sport, arts and culture, says the party alleges McKenzie may have favoured his inner circle and the Patriotic Alliance (PA) by appointing people with links to the PA to positions at public entities within the department. According to the DA, recent investigations have identified at least 19 people with ties to the PA who have been appointed to the boards of public entities within the department. This includes the National Library of South Africa, the National Arts Council, the National Film and Video Foundation and the Robben Island Museum. The DA alleges some of these people serve on more than one board, which according to the party could create potential conflicts of interest.
In the supplementary complaint, filed on Thursday, the PP is asked to expand the investigation to allegations that McKenzie may have breached the Executive Ethics Act and the executive ethics code. The DA has also submitted further information on McKenzie's R31 million trip to the Soccer World Cup. According to the party, the minister's delegation of 18 members included various people from his political office. The DA says it has filed a Paia request to obtain further information about the delegation and that this information will be submitted to the PP.
The party's initial complaint focused on among other things the appointment of PA members to the 2025/26 Mzansi Golden Economy evaluation panel and the minister's R31 million trip to the World Cup. The DA says the PP must now test the new allegations against the available evidence.
This article is an automatic English translation of a Nuusflits article originally published in Afrikaans. Read the Afrikaans original.
