The Lottery has stopped a grant towards the lavishly funded once-a-year SATMA awards. Illustration: Lisa Nelson (SATMA logo superimposed around original illustration)
From 2019 to 2022 the South African Standard Songs Awards obtained over R16-million from the Lottery.
However the Lottery has withheld payment from the 2023 grant next an investigation.
The NLC has requested the Special Investigating Device to probe alleged “double dipping” in several years in which funders other than the NLC also chipped in that will help fund the awards.
The scale of funding for that annual two night celebration is astonishing.
The Mpumalanga authorities has funded the awards with in excess of R41-million following it “was awarded the correct” to host the SATMA awards for three yrs, commencing during the 2020/21 economical calendar year.
This has been Along with Lottery funding.
The Countrywide Lotteries Fee (NLC) is refusing to pay a R1.two-million grant it originally accredited for an annual traditional new music awards ceremony. The exact same occasion also been given tens of an incredible number of rand in the Mpumalanga provincial government.
From 2019 to 2022 the NLC awarded many grants totalling almost R16.4-million on the Mageza Heritage Basis, the organisers of the annual South African Standard Tunes Awards (SATMA).
But it really halted the payment of the 2023 grant following an internal investigation.
GroundUp has exposed huge corruption inside the NLC that occurred until finally the prior board and administration was changed in 2022. The new NLC Management is aiming to clear up the corruption in the past.
The NLC’s investigation centered on the two the 2023 funding and before grants awarded to Mageza to stage the awards. The investigation also probed a payment of around R718,000, allegedly paid out from Lottery resources 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 any other costs to phase the awards, Goba said: “G4 was commissioned to perform a creation of the event and received paid out for anyone products and services, like to handle and generate the leading event, roadshows, and so forth. I am the founder of the SATMA Awards; I'm the a person who needs to be compensated for building the strategy determined by affordability and what Mageza decides.”
The NLC has handed a dossier of its investigation to the Exclusive Investigating Unit (SIU). It's questioned the SIU to research 4 diverse lottery-funded projects that acquired grants in between Oct 2020 and May 2023, as well as the payment to G4 Brothers.
The NLC has also requested the SIU to probe alleged “double dipping” in yrs exactly where funders other than the NLC also chipped in to help fund the awards.
This includes a grant of R400,000 from the Countrywide Heritage Council and just above R62,000 from “SABC Cell” in 2020 - the identical economical yr in which the occasion acquired Pretty much R2.six-million in lottery funding and R13.five-million within the Mpumalanga Department of Culture, Sports and Recreation (MDCSR).
MDCSR funded the awards on the tune of around R41-million following it “was awarded the correct” to host the SATMA awards for three several years, beginning in the 2020/21 financial yr.
The Mpumalanga federal government’s funding for SATMA around that time period was significantly higher than grants to some other organisation for cultural initiatives and events.
The MDSCR gave R3.5-million to SATMA inside the 2019/20 money calendar year just before ramping up its contribution just after signing the agreement to host the awards more than the following 3 several years.
The whole finances submitted to your NLC when Mageza used with the disputed 2023 SATMA funding was R1.two-million. But of the, only R500,000 was allotted for the particular staging on the function. Other line objects from the price range incorporated R400,000 for “staff salaries and benefits”, R200,000 for “stipends” and R100,000 for “journey.”
The awards had been held on fifteen December on the Durban International ตรวจ หวย Convention Centre. Mageza says it urgently needs the blocked grant to pay for the event’s company companies.
The SATMA awards, which were being very first held in 2006, are staged around two nights and it truly is unclear how the tens of thousands and thousands in grants from the NLC, MDCSR and various funders were being spent.
Desmond Msomi, the chairman of Mageza, did not reply to specific concerns from GroundUp, including the expense of staging a SATMA awards ceremony.
Instead, he stated: “Your concerns are observed. Even so, we are already suggested by the NLC this subject is getting investigated from the SIU. Hence, we are unable to respond to your inquiries till we have been encouraged that the investigation has become done and the amount owed is compensated to Mageza.”
After Mpumalanga “won the correct” to host the awards for three several years, the then provincial Lifestyle, Activity and Recreation MEC, Lindiwe Ntshalintshali, described it as “a boon” to the province.
“Internet hosting the SATMA Awards has beneficial financial spinoffs to the Mpumalanga coffers and What's more, it talks to your Office’s mandate of advertising and marketing social cohesion.”