2013 Sports Awards to cost R65 million
In a reply to a DA parliamentary question, the Minister of Sports and Recreation, Fikile Mbalula, has revealed that his Department intends to spend a whopping R65 million on the 2013 SA Sports Awards. In 2012, R27 million was spent on the SA Sports Awards. This means, in effect, the cost of hosting the Sports Awards almost tripled within the last year.
I will write to the Auditor-General, Terrence Nobembe, requesting that this expenditure be classified as fruitless and wasteful, and that Minister Mbalula be disciplined accordingly.
According to the Minister, the Department has allocated R21 million of its budget to the awards and the R44 million balance will be sourced through sponsorships and partners - this is money that should have been spent on fulfilling crucial aspects of his Department's mandate such as increasing participation in sport in disadvantaged communities. It is simply unacceptable that Minister Mbalula chooses to spend a R65 million on amplifying ‘razzmatazz' instead of service delivery.
R65 million could have been used to provide:
- 86 multi-purpose sports fields at R750,000 each
- 3,250 swimming pools at R20,000 each
- 11 rugby fields at R5.5 million
- 13 soccer fields at R5 million each
- 1,625,000 soccer balls at R40 each
- Support to 541 Mass Participation, Opportunity and Access, Development and Growth (MOD) centres at R120,000 per annum each.