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

From 2019 to 2022 the South African Traditional Music Awards received around R16-million with the Lottery.
Although the Lottery has withheld payment in the 2023 grant following an investigation.
The NLC has requested the Special Investigating Unit to probe alleged “double dipping” in years in which funders in addition to the NLC also chipped in to aid fund the awards.
The size of funding for that once-a-year two night occasion is astonishing.
The Mpumalanga govt has funded the awards with around R41-million following it “was awarded the correct” to host the SATMA awards for three many years, beginning in the 2020/21 monetary calendar year.
This has long been in addition to Lottery funding.
The Countrywide Lotteries Commission (NLC) is refusing to pay for a R1.2-million grant it initially permitted for an annual common audio awards ceremony. The identical party also acquired tens of millions of rand through the Mpumalanga provincial governing administration.

From 2019 to 2022 the NLC awarded numerous grants totalling Pretty much R16.four-million to the Mageza Heritage Foundation, the organisers in the yearly South African Classic Tunes Awards (SATMA).

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

GroundUp has uncovered large corruption from the NLC that came about right up until the preceding board and management was changed in 2022. The new NLC Management is trying to clean up the corruption with 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 about R718,000, allegedly paid from Lottery money to G4 Brothers, of which Dumisani Gobe, the founding father of the SATMA awards, is really a director.

Requested if Mageza paid out G4 a licencing or any other charges to stage the awards, Goba claimed: “G4 was commissioned to do a production of the occasion and acquired paid out for the people expert services, like to deal with and deliver the most crucial party, roadshows, etcetera. I am the founder of the SATMA Awards; I'm the just one who have to be compensated for generating the idea based on affordability and what Mageza decides.”

The NLC has handed a file of its investigation towards the Distinctive Investigating Unit (SIU). It's got asked the SIU to research 4 distinct lottery-funded jobs that obtained grants concerning October 2020 and will 2023, and also the payment to G4 Brothers.

The NLC has also asked the SIU to probe alleged “double dipping” in a long time wherever funders in addition to the NLC also chipped in to assist fund the awards.

This includes a grant of R400,000 in the National Heritage Council and just above R62,000 from “SABC Mobile” in 2020 - the identical economic yr by which the event been given Just about R2.6-million in lottery funding and R13.five-million with the Mpumalanga Division of Society, Athletics and Recreation (MDCSR).

MDCSR funded the awards towards the tune of around R41-million soon after it “was awarded the right” to host the SATMA awards for three decades, beginning from the 2020/21 monetary yr.

The Mpumalanga governing administration’s funding for SATMA more than that time period was considerably better than grants to another organisation for cultural projects and occasions.

The MDSCR gave R3.5-million to SATMA in the 2019/twenty economical calendar year right before ramping up its contribution just after signing the settlement to host the awards in excess of the following three decades.

The overall funds submitted towards the NLC when Mageza used to the disputed 2023 SATMA funding was R1.two-million. But of this, only R500,000 was allotted for the particular staging on the party. Other line objects in the funds included R400,000 for “personnel salaries and Added benefits”, R200,000 for “stipends” and R100,000 for “vacation.”

The awards had been held on 15 December for the Durban Intercontinental หวย ลาว ย้อน หลัง Convention Centre. Mageza claims it urgently requirements the blocked grant to pay for the celebration’s services suppliers.

The SATMA awards, which had been initially held in 2006, are staged above two evenings and it's unclear how the tens of thousands and thousands in grants within the NLC, MDCSR along with other funders ended up used.

Desmond Msomi, the chairman of Mageza, didn't reply to unique thoughts from GroundUp, such as the price of staging a SATMA awards ceremony.

As a substitute, he claimed: “Your inquiries are famous. Nonetheless, we happen to be encouraged because of the NLC that this matter is being investigated via the SIU. For this reason, we are not able to respond to your inquiries until we have been encouraged which the investigation is concluded and the quantity owed has been paid to Mageza.”

Right after Mpumalanga “gained the best” to host the awards for 3 yrs, the then provincial Lifestyle, Sport and Recreation MEC, Lindiwe Ntshalintshali, described it as “a boon” for your province.

“Hosting the SATMA Awards has positive financial spinoffs for that Mpumalanga coffers and What's more, it talks on the Division’s mandate of advertising social cohesion.”