Officials from the Department of Sports, Arts and Culture faced tough questions in parliament on Wednesday following the release of the Auditor-General’s (AG) report highlighting financial and management concerns within the department.
The meeting of parliament’s portfolio committee on sports, arts and culture came as South Africans continued to celebrate Bafana Bafana’s qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The department oversees heritage institutions, libraries, performing arts centres, and sports federations.
According to the AG’s findings, the department showed a “heavy reliance over the auditing process to identify errors,” while irregular expenditure increased from R65 million in 2023/24 to R70 million in the 2024/25 financial year.
Department director-general Dr. Cynthia Khumalo led the presentation to parliament, stating that the department spent 99.5% of its more than R6 billion budget and achieved 93% of its targets, compared to 91% in the previous year. She maintained that internal audit measures were in place.
“We have had several challenges as a department in the execution of our work,” Khumalo said, assuring MPs that corrective systems were being implemented.
However, members of the portfolio committee expressed deep dissatisfaction. DA MP Leah Potgieter said the department appeared to depend on the AG to detect issues instead of addressing them proactively.
“One of the biggest problems is that the department relies on the AG to pick up issues. They don’t mention consequence management in the annual report. It doesn’t seem to be a priority,” Potgieter said.
She also questioned why the department nearly exhausted its budget despite failing to meet all its targets, suggesting possible overspending.
The MK Party’s Gift Motaung criticised the department’s performance, saying the reports presented were “null and void,” while ANC MP Nomgqibelo Nkosi expressed concern over repeated non-compliance.
“This thing of non-compliance and not adhering to the recommendations of the AG bothers us. We speak about irregular expenditure all the time, but nothing is happening. Can the department take us seriously?” Nkosi said.
MPs also raised concerns about the department’s allocation of R82 million for video assistant referee (VAR) technology for local football. Chief financial officer Israel Mokgwamme confirmed that about R40 million would be diverted from funds meant for sports federations to fund the project.
ANC MP Gaolatlhe Kgabo questioned the department’s priorities. “Can you give us a clue on the yardstick used to measure the importance of VAR implementation over grassroots development?” he asked.
Responding to the criticism, Khumalo said the department valued the committee’s oversight. “The thing of most concern to me is when members say we don’t seem to take them seriously. It may be a perception that we must correct. We are committed and understand the role of the portfolio committee,” she said.
The committee also received a briefing from the AG’s deputy business unit leader, Mbali Tsotetsi, who reported that while 13 entities in the portfolio achieved clean audits compared to 11 the previous year, 51% of entities still had negative outcomes.
“There is a lack of institutionalised integrity and accountability to enforce compliance. Consequence management is not taken swiftly, and there remains a heavy reliance on the auditing process to identify errors,” Tsotetsi said.
Senior AG manager Omphemetse Setebe added that irregular expenditure was mostly due to failures in following supply chain management processes prescribed by the National Treasury.
The AG’s office recommended that the department’s leadership strengthen internal controls, enforce accountability through consequence management, and urgently fill key vacancies to prevent further governance lapses.
