Parliament, Tuesday, 9 June 2026 - The Portfolio Committee on Sport, Arts and Culture has resolved to send back the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture delegation after it appeared before the Committee with insufficient seniority to account for the Fourth Quarter Performance Report.
The Committee notes the apology tendered by the Acting Director-General, Mr Vusithemba Ndima, who submitted a medical certificate. The Committee also acknowledges the delegation led by Mr Sibusiso Tsanyane, Acting Deputy Director-General for Arts and Culture Promotion and Development, who was mandated by Mr Ndima to act on behalf of the Director-General for the purposes of this meeting.
The Committee further notes with concern the absence of the Director-General, the Minister, and the Deputy Minister from this engagement. Given the significance of the Fourth Quarter Performance Report, members reflected on whether the Department’s political and administrative leadership should have been present to account directly to the Committee.
The Committee trusts that any delegation attending must be sufficiently mandated to respond comprehensively to all matters raised and to provide the necessary assurances on performance, governance, and expenditure. From what was observed during the interrogations, it was clear that the delegation did not have the required mandate.
The Committee records that the following key role players were absent:
1. *DDG Mandisa Tshikwatamba* – seconded to PACOFS
2. *DDG Vincent Campbell* – absent
3. *DDG Vusithemba Ndima* – Acting DG, submitted a doctor’s note
The Committee further notes there is currently no substantive DDG for the Arts and Culture Promotion and Development branch, the position Mr Tsanyane is acting in.
Chairperson Mr Joe McGluwa said the Committee understood it was World Cup season, but would not accept any undermining of its constitutional oversight role. “The Committee notes the apologies tendered by the Acting Director-General and acknowledges the delegation led by the Acting Deputy Director-General. But it cannot be business as usual and that the work of the department is suspended at a time that coincides with the start of the World Cup,” Mr McGluwa said.
The Committee expressed serious concern over the Department’s declining performance. Performance has dropped from 90% two financial years ago, to 80% in the previous year, and now stands at 76%. “This downward trajectory is unacceptable,” the Chairperson said. “In light of this trend, the Committee underscores that future engagements of this nature must be attended by the Director-General, Minister, or Deputy Minister to account directly to the Committee.”
Mr McGluwa cautioned against the acting positions within the department.
McGluwa further reiterated that the programme for this engagement was communicated to DSAC on 22 April 2026, and the Committee expects full accountability at the highest level going forward.
McGluwa commends the committee for been patient and fair, but the continued decline in performance cannot be ignored.
Accountability must come from the top, and we expect the Director-General, Minister, or Deputy Minister to appear before us in future. Our oversight role is not symbolic — it is a constitutional duty, and we will not compromise on that responsibility.
On a positive note, the Portfolio Committee congratulates our senior men’s football team, Bafana Bafana, as they take on Mexico in their opening game of the FIFA World Cup on Thursday. “We believe the boys will make the country proud as they progress through the group stages.
The Committee also extends its best wishes to the Proteas Women as they face Australia in their opening game of the T20 World Cup on Saturday. “Our female team has proven beyond reasonable doubt that they are capable of bringing the cup home. It is just RSA and no DNA indeed; our teams must make us proud to be South Africans and they must know that 66 million of us are behind them,” concluded Mr McGluwa.
ISSUED BY THE PARLIAMENTARY COMMUNICATION SERVICES ON BEHALF OF THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON SPORT, ARTS AND CULTURE, MR JOE MCGLUWA.
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