The R150,000 in irregular lotto funding that the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (Sascoc) must pay back had allegedly been provided for, sources say.
Sascoc president Barry Hendricks had warned in 2023 that the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) was probing the organisation in relation to lotto funding from 2016.
The umbrella sports body, which these days enjoys healthy sponsorships and a better reputation, reported a R7m surplus for the year ending March 31 2025.
Two sources told TimesLIVE Sascoc had made provision for the R150,000.
The SIU recently said it had obtained an order from the Special Tribunal to freeze assets worth R24.98m relating to a National Lotteries Commission (NLC) grant paid to Sascoc before the 2016 Rio Olympics.
Sascoc applied for the funding in July that year on behalf of the Mshandukani Foundation, an NPO that was registered just four months earlier, “claiming it would support Olympic awareness events nationwide”.
“Despite the foundation’s lack of track record, the NLC approved R24.98m within six days,” the SIU said.
The money was paid over on July 20 2016, and Sascoc allegedly transferred R24.83m to the Mshandukani Foundation’s account in three tranches, keeping R150,000 for itself.
The SIU said within days the foundation allegedly diverted funds to entities linked to NLC officials:
- R15.35m was given to Ironbridge Travel Agency, which was linked to former NLC COO Phillemon Letwaba, who used the money for cars, goats and personal expenses;
- R7.23m to Mshandukani Holdings, which was controlled by foundation member Mashudu Shandukani;
- R3m to Mosokodi Business Trust, which was also linked to Letwaba;
- direct payment of R450,000 to Letwaba; and,
- R600,000 to former NLC legal manager Tsietsi Maseiwa.
The CEO of Sascoc at the time, Tubby Reddy, and the CFO, Vinesh Maharaj, were fired in 2017 over various allegations.
Their attempt to clear their names at a committee of inquiry into Sascoc in early 2018 backfired; instead, they were grilled.
Reddy has since died.
TimesLIVE
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