Sisulu adamant appointment of SA Tourism board members lawful
The DA's Manny de Freitas said three newly appointed members may well have been illegally appointed
Image: Sandile Ndlovu
Tourism minister Lindiwe Sisulu has denied claims that the appointment of new SA Tourism board members was unlawful, saying it was done within provisions of the Tourism Act.
According to DA shadow minister of tourism Manny de Freitas, Section 13(3) of the act states that the minister must publish a 30-day notice in the government gazette and two national newspapers to invite nominees for such appointments.
Instead, the minister appointed the new board members on February 3 — a day after three key board members resigned with immediate effect.
“This means that the prescripts and processes stipulated in the act were not followed by the minister. This potentially means that the three newly appointed members may well have been illegally appointed and that any decisions and resolutions made by the board since the resignations may all be nullified,” said de Freitas.
Coming to her defence, Sisulu's spokesperson Steve Motale said the appointments were made after extensive legal opinion.
Section 16(2) of the act states that the minister may appoint a qualified person to fill a vacancy for an “unexpired portion of the period” if, for any reason, the office of a member of the board becomes vacant.
“The ministry is of the view that the appointment of replacement SA Tourism Board members was above board and lawful,” Motale said.
The board's Enver Duminy, Ravi Nadasen and Rosemary Anderson resigned amid the controversial Tottenham Hotspur Football Club sponsorship proposal.
The three quit shortly after it was revealed by Daily Maverick that SA Tourism CFO Johan Van Der Walt was linked to the agency that would benefit from the R900m deal.
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