The Lottery has stopped a grant to your lavishly funded once-a-year SATMA awards. Illustration: Lisa Nelson (SATMA symbol superimposed above initial illustration)

From 2019 to 2022 the South African Regular Songs Awards obtained over R16-million from the Lottery.
Although the Lottery has withheld payment with the 2023 grant adhering to an investigation.
The NLC has questioned the Special Investigating Unit to probe alleged “double dipping” in years where funders in addition to the NLC also chipped in that will help fund the awards.
The size of funding for your once-a-year two evening event is astonishing.
The Mpumalanga government has funded the awards with around R41-million immediately after it “was awarded the best” to host the SATMA awards for 3 yrs, beginning during the 2020/21 economic 12 months.
This has been Together with Lottery funding.
The Nationwide Lotteries Commission (NLC) is refusing to pay a R1.two-million grant it initially approved for an once-a-year conventional songs awards ceremony. The exact same function also obtained tens of countless rand from your Mpumalanga provincial authorities.

From 2019 to 2022 the NLC awarded quite a few grants totalling Practically R16.4-million to the Mageza Heritage Foundation, the organisers of the yearly South African Common Songs Awards (SATMA).

But it halted the payment of a 2023 grant after an inside investigation.

GroundUp has uncovered massive corruption inside the NLC that befell till the preceding board and management was replaced in 2022. The new NLC leadership is trying to clear up the corruption on the previous.

The NLC’s investigation focused on both of those the 2023 funding and previously grants awarded to Mageza to stage the awards. The investigation also probed a payment of over R718,000, allegedly paid out from Lottery funds to G4 Brothers, of which Dumisani Gobe, the founder of the SATMA awards, is usually a director.

Asked if Mageza paid out G4 a licencing or every other charges to phase the awards, Goba explained: “G4 was commissioned to try and do a manufacture of the event and obtained paid for people solutions, like to manage and develop the leading event, roadshows, and so on. I am the founding father of the SATMA Awards; I'm the one who should be compensated for generating the principle dependant on affordability and what Mageza decides.”

The NLC has handed a file of its investigation on the Specific Investigating Unit (SIU). It has questioned the SIU to analyze four diverse lottery-funded initiatives that gained grants amongst October 2020 and should 2023, as well as the payment to G4 Brothers.

The NLC has also questioned the SIU to probe alleged “double dipping” in yrs exactly where funders besides the NLC also chipped in to help fund the awards.

This includes a grant of R400,000 with the National Heritage Council and just in excess of R62,000 from “SABC Cell” in 2020 - precisely the same financial yr wherein the event acquired Just about R2.six-million in lottery funding and R13.five-million within the Mpumalanga Office of Society, Sporting activities and Recreation (MDCSR).

MDCSR funded the awards towards the tune of in excess of R41-million just after it “was awarded the right” to host the SATMA awards for 3 decades, starting while in the 2020/21 economic year.

The Mpumalanga governing administration’s funding for SATMA around that interval was considerably larger than grants to any other organisation for cultural jobs and functions.

The MDSCR gave R3.5-million to SATMA from the 2019/20 economical 12 months prior to ramping up its contribution just after signing the settlement to host the awards in excess of another a few many years.

The entire finances submitted into the NLC when Mageza used for your disputed 2023 SATMA funding was R1.two-million. But of the, only R500,000 was allocated for the actual staging of the function. Other line goods while in the funds incorporated R400,000 for “staff salaries and Gains”, R200,000 for “stipends” and R100,000 for “journey.”

The awards were held on 15 December in the Durban Intercontinental หวย หุ้น ช่อง 9 วัน นี้ Conference Centre. Mageza claims it urgently demands the blocked grant to pay the celebration’s provider providers.

The SATMA awards, which ended up initial held in 2006, are staged about two nights and it is actually unclear how the tens of hundreds of thousands in grants within the NLC, MDCSR and also other funders ended up spent.

Desmond Msomi, the chairman of Mageza, did not respond to certain issues from GroundUp, such as the expense of staging a SATMA awards ceremony.

Rather, he mentioned: “Your inquiries are pointed out. Having said that, we happen to be advised through the NLC that this matter is being investigated by the SIU. As a result, we are unable to respond to your issues right up until we are recommended that the investigation has actually been finished and the quantity owed has been paid to Mageza.”

Soon after Mpumalanga “received the correct” to host the awards for three several years, the then provincial Society, Sport and Recreation MEC, Lindiwe Ntshalintshali, described it as “a boon” for your province.

“Web hosting the SATMA Awards has positive financial spinoffs for the Mpumalanga coffers and Furthermore, it talks to your Section’s mandate of advertising and marketing social cohesion.”