The Southern African Music Rights Organisation (Samro) is once again mired in scandal, this time over allegations that one of its non-executive directors was accused of using the organisation’s funds for her own private benefit.
Dr Sibongile Vilakazi, the chairperson of Samro’s social, ethics, and governance committee and former Black Management Forum president, allegedly tapped into the organisation’s funds, which are generated from members’ royalties, to bankroll the launch of her book, Put Her in Her Place.
The private event, which took place on December 2, allegedly had no connection to Samro’s mandate. The event featured music performances allegedly paid for by the organisation.
Samro is one of the major collecting societies in the music industry. It generates revenue primarily by collecting royalties on behalf of music creators, songwriters, composers, and publishers.
These royalties mostly come from radio and TV stations that use licensed music. After licensing a song, Samro collects fees from these platforms and then distributes the earnings to its registered members.
Link between music users, creators
In essence, Samro serves as the vital link between music users and creators, making sure that artists are paid whenever their music is played.
Vilakazi herself confirmed Samro’s involvement in an Instagram post, thanking the body for supporting the music item at the launch.
She wrote: “Shout out to @samromusic for supporting the music item for the #PutHerInHerPlace #BookLaunch.”
According to insiders, the suspended chief operating officer, Mpho Mofikoe, discovered the questionable expenditure and lodged a formal complaint, demanding a board investigation.
The board allegedly refused to act, choosing instead to suspend Mofikoe on August 4, a move sources say was designed to conceal further exposure of internal wrongdoing.
“This was an outrageous conflict of interest. Artists are routinely denied even the smallest grants by Samro, yet the organisation saw fit to fund a senior official’s personal project.
“If Vilakazi wanted to support the industry, she should have paid out of her own pocket,” said an insider.
Dismissed from Wits
This is not Vilakazi’s first public scandal. In 2019, she was dismissed from Wits Business School for allegedly double-dipping, secretly holding a full-time job at Kantar SA while still drawing a Wits salary. Her court appeal was thrown out.
The allegations against Vilakazi come as Samro’s board faces its own credibility crisis.
Last week, Sunday World revealed that board chair Nicholas Maweni tried to push a friend into a high-paying Samro position by sending their CV directly to the organisation’s general manager via WhatsApp.
In an interview, CEO Annabel Lebethe denied that Mofikoe had uncovered corruption, claiming instead that she is under investigation for transgressions in her role.
Lebethe admitted a 2022 forensic audit uncovered fraudulent claims by some members but insisted this was a board-led process, not a whistleblower revelation.
“This has nothing to do with the forensic report. It’s about the conduct of the COO,” she said.
Samro had not yet responded to detailed questions regarding the use of members’ money for Vilakazi’s book launch at the time of publication.
Vilakazi referred all queries back to Samro.
