Please find attached a soundbite by Tsepo Mhlongo MP.
The DA notes with concern the decision by the Department of Sports, Arts and Culture to appoint a new service provider for its wellness intervention programme for artists and sportspeople.
The SILAPHA Wellness Intervention Programme was initiated by the department to tackle the exacerbated incidents of deteriorating mental wellness of artists during and after the devastating covid crisis.
It has come to the DA’s attention that the department has now forked out another R18 million for a new service provider despite the company, Indingliz Advertising & Marketing, being awarded the almost R15 million tender to pilot the programme for the last three years.
For these types of interventions to be successful there needs to be continuity. The minister can’t scrap out and start anew every three years.
The minister must explain to the portfolio committee why a new service provider was appointed. To date the committee has not seen any performance evaluation to prove that the initial programme was successful or unsuccessful.
The decision to re-pilot the same programme with a new service provider who allegedly has no experience in wellness reeks of corruption and wasteful expenditure.
We call on Minister Zizi Kodwa and Indingliz Advertising and Marketing to explain and provide a detailed plan of what their intervention did and how many artists they reached as well as what the money was used for.