Justice Minister Ronald Lamola.
- The Justice Department is looking for creative ways to close loopholes in whistleblower protection while relevant legislation is amended, Justice Minister Ronald Lamola said.
- Lamola declined to comment to SANEF on SA Tourism’s investigation into the whistleblower who leaked its controversial proposed deal with Tottenham Hotspur.
- However, he said the Protected Disclosures Act requires all state bodies to protect whistleblowers.
Days after SA Tourism announced a “forensic investigation” into the leak of its controversial proposed sponsorship deal with Tottenham Hotspur, Minister for Justice and Correctional Services Ronald Lamola said he is looking for “creative” ways to close the loopholes in current protections for whistleblowers pending amendments. to the relevant legislation.
Lamola addressed the annual general meeting of the South African National Publishers Forum (SANEF) on Saturday morning. SA Tourism Executive Director Themba Khumalo was also due to address the meeting, but his appearance was canceled due to a “family emergency”.
It was Khumalo who, last Thursday at a news conference, said SA Tourism would “isolate” the whistleblower of the proposed sponsorship deal worth close to R1 billion over three years with English soccer club Tottenham Hotspur.
On Wednesday, despite being harassed by the whistleblower threat and ordered to halt the deal by the Tourism Portfolio Committee, Turismo de SA announced that its board “has deliberated and resolved that a forensic investigation into the Turismo de SA leak Board discussions take place.”
Asked about these advances, Lamola did not want to express himself, since he did not have all the information.
However, he said the Protected Disclosures Act requires all state bodies to protect whistleblowers.
READ | Tourism committee says Spurs deal ends ‘here, now’ as it haggles to Sisulu
In his speech to the editors, Lamola said that one of the issues that the media need to reflect on is the protection of whistleblowers, “who contribute a lot in the fight against corruption.”
He said that last year, on World Press Freedom Day, May 3, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) launched a thematic brief on “Journalism and whistleblowing : an important tool to protect human rights, fight corruption and strengthen democracy”. “.
He said:
The key recommendations of the thematic report were to promote and strengthen laws and practices that allow the identity of the whistleblower to be protected if desired. Also strengthen the norms, laws and practices that allow journalists to maintain the confidentiality of their sources.
“Here in South Africa, we are working hard to strengthen laws to protect whistleblowers, we are confident that the media will be important partners in this process.
“We need to work together to ensure that the government and companies implicated by whistleblowers are held accountable. The media can also continue to expose those who victimize good citizens who report corrupt and unethical practices.”
It was also one of the recommendations of the Zondo Commission that the protection of whistleblowers should be strengthened. Lamola said that in the meantime, the department is looking for a “creative way” to close the loopholes until the legislation is finalized.
Last Wednesday, Daily Maverick broke the news of SA Tourism’s proposed three-year contract with Spurs, as the north London club is known, which would be worth £42.5 million (around R900 million). The deal would begin at the start of the 2023-’24 season and end at the end of the 2026-’27 season. In exchange, SA Tourism would receive kit branding, interview backdrop branding, match day advertising, partnership announcements, training camps in South Africa and free access to tickets and hospitality from the stadium.
READ | Tottenham deal: SA Tourism looking for whistleblower, Sisulu wants CFO out
The next day, Khumalo held a press conference in which he said the whistleblower would be “isolated.”
The proposed deal has caused a public outcry.
On Friday, Tottenham released its financial statements for the year ending June 30, 2022. The club had revenue of £444 million for the year, around 9.5 billion rand. This was a significant increase compared to £361.9 million the previous year. However, it made a loss of £50 million, or R1 billion, by 2022.
In the accompanying statement, club chairman Daniel Levy listed increasing “sponsorship income” as one of the keys to keeping the club’s first team competitive.
“Tighter control of our cost base, higher sponsorship and commercial revenue and a consistent European rating are key to our ability to continue to invest in First Team and stay competitive,” he said.
