Tourism minister Patricia de Lille has dissolved the SA Tourism Board with immediate effect, accusing them of unlawfully convening a special meeting.
The Sunday Times reported at the weekend that De Lille and the board had locked horns over the board’s decision to institute disciplinary action against the entity’s now-suspended CEO. This was over a R4.1m prepayment to a service provider for work that investigators say was never done, a charge the company vehemently denies.
De Lille said in a statement on Wednesday that she had been given legal advice that only the board chairperson could convene a special board meeting, meaning a meeting held on August 1 was irregular as it came after the resignation of Prof Gregory Davids the day before.
Her office said she had previously cautioned the board of the possible implications of failing to follow due process when convening special and ordinary meetings, which “could render outcomes from such meetings procedurally invalid and unlawful”.
The Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa) has called on De Lille to reverse her decision, denouncing it as political interference which “represents a direct assault on governance and accountability within a state entity”.
Outa said: “The SAT board had acted within its mandate and in line with its fiduciary responsibilities by addressing serious governance concerns, including findings raised by the auditor-general and a corroborating forensic investigation into irregular financial conduct. Instead of supporting her own competent board for holding executive management accountable, the minister has chosen to protect the SAT CEO by disbanding the very body tasked with oversight.
“We believe the minister did not even take the time to formally meet the board and, therefore, she has not given the process sufficient input and thought before taking this drastic action of dismissing the entire board. As far as Outa is concerned, the fact that the board does not have a chairperson — which incidentally is the minister’s fault — doesn’t make the board’s decision unlawful in taking the necessary action that it did. We believe the board was quorate and unanimous in how it arrived at the decision to suspend the CEO, pending a disciplinary inquiry into her conduct.”
De Lille's decision was disgraceful, said Outa CEO Wayne Duvenage.
“Outa has witnessed many boards of state entities that have fallen short of their oversight and fiduciary duties, which gives rise to maladministration and corruption in these entities. Thus, when we witness a state entity board that is acting with integrity and diligence, we need to celebrate and support them. What infuriates us is when a minister such as De Lille steps in to dismantle it. Such political interference and irrational behaviour undermines accountability, emboldens misconduct, and signals to all state entities that political protection trumps governance.”
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