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The South African National Editors’ Forum (Sanef) has cleared former chair and Sunday Times editor Makhudu Sefara of any wrongdoing under the organisation’s constitution and code of conduct following an independent legal investigation into allegations linked to the alleged misappropriation of National Lotteries funding.
The findings, announced on Friday ahead of Sanef’s elective AGM this weekend, follow an inquiry commissioned after the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) issued a media statement that linked Sefara to the allegations.
Sanef said it had appointed independent legal counsel to determine whether Sefara had acted in breach of its constitution, code of conduct or organisational values, while making it clear that the process was not intended to duplicate or interfere with the SIU’s own investigation.
“After considering all available evidence — including direct communication from the SIU to Sefara’s lawyers — the investigation found that Sefara has not breached Sanef’s current constitution and code of conduct," the organisation said.
According to Sanef, the conclusion was supported by a letter dated May 21 from acting SIU head Leonard Lekgetho to Sefara’s lawyers, stating that neither Sefara nor his company, Unscripted Communication, had been the subject of the SIU investigation and that no findings had been made against either.
The SIU correspondence, quoted by Sanef, states that Unscripted Communication “was never a subject of the SIU investigation” and that the unit “does not have any claim” against either the company or Sefara.
The SIU, however, said in response that Sanef’s statement gave the impression that the SIU had exonerated Sefara as a beneficiary of NLC funds.
“This is not a reflection of the letter sent to his lawyers,” the SIU said.
The SIU said it did not investigate or exonerate Sefara as a beneficiary and its communications were confined to NLC grant recipient Todi Media’s misuse of NLC funds and its “voluntary” repayment.
The SIU said its letter to Sefara’s attorneys stated that Todi Media’s director, Daniel Makwela, failed to provide evidence of how the R1.5m NLC grant was used. Instead, Makwela offered to repay R1.1m.
The SIU said it rejected the offer and demanded a full account of the funds in a sworn affidavit, along with supporting documents, before considering any settlement.
The SIU said when Todi Media could not account for the funds, it offered to repay the full R1.5m as the final settlement.
The SIU said its findings showed payments of R900,000 to Dungaree Communications and R550,000 to Sefara’s company Unscripted Communication.
“The SIU explicitly stated: ‘Unscripted Communication was never a subject of the SIU investigation and as such there is no finding against your client nor his company’. However, as part of the SIU investigation, the money was followed and found in Sefara’s business and personal bank accounts. Furthermore, Todi Media could not produce any agreement to justify the payment made to Unscripted Communication, a day after receiving money from the NLC.”
The SIU confirmed it had no claim against Unscripted Communication and that liability rested solely with Todi Media, which refunded the entire grant.
“However, the SIU did not say that Sefara did not benefit from the funds, as Todi Media or Makwela could not provide any evidence of how the funds were utilised, as stated in the grant application.”
The SIU said by ignoring these clear points, Sanef’s statement misled the public and undermined the integrity of the SIU’s work.
Sefara stepped aside as Sanef chair in April after the SIU publicly linked him to the alleged misuse of National Lotteries Commission funds. At the time, Sanef said it would conduct an independent legal review while respecting the SIU’s ongoing work.
Sanef said it would now review its own processes and policies to strengthen its governance and uphold media freedom, editorial independence and ethical journalism.
The organisation also confirmed that Sefara will not resume his position as chair and will not stand for re-election at Saturday’s AGM, where new leadership will be elected.
Sefara remains on special leave as Sunday Times editor while an independent investigation commissioned by Arena Holdings continues.
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