The Bolsheviks Party of South Africa has condemned the Road Accident Fund (RAF) for apparently prioritising foreigners over South Africans when it comes to making payouts.
Bolsheviks’ communications manager, Mandla Mamedzi, said the latest scandal involving R546-million paid out to foreign nationals in a single year, while only 17 of the 222 claims were finalised — is yet another example of a state entity collapsing under maladministration and deliberate mismanagement.
The Bolsheviks’ concern follows the recent statement by RAF in Limpopo that the victims of the bus accident two weeks ago outside Louis Trichardt are entitled to lodge claims; however, they clarified that “each case must be assessed on its merit before liability is determined”.
“The RAF exists to protect road users and provide relief to victims of road carnage in South Africa, but instead, it has become a leaking pipeline of corruption, legal exploitation, irregular payments, and questionable settlements that drain public resources while South Africans suffer in silence,” said Mamedzi.
“Our people continue to endure years-long claim delays, unfair rejections without cause, and legal costs that destroy families — all under a dysfunctional bureaucracy that rewards insiders and syndicates.
“Yet the RAF miraculously moves with speed to channel hundreds of millions into foreign-linked claims — with no transparency, no authentication, and no accountability.”
Collapse of internal controls
He added that the RAF’s inability to efficiently process foreign claims, maintain credible records, or present accurate reports reflects a collapse of internal controls and leadership.
“This chaos is not accidental — it is fertile ground for manipulation and concealment of wrongdoing,” he said.
Mamedzi further stated that there appears to be a fast-track system for politically connected beneficiaries, law firms aligned with insiders, and so-called “special” claims — while ordinary South Africans wait years for justice.
“This two-tier system exposes favouritism, political interference, and unjustified preferential treatment.
“The RAF has effectively been reduced to a hunting ground for corrupt officials, rogue lawyers, medical cartels, fraudulent claim syndicates, political beneficiaries, and middlemen,” he pointed out.
Mamedzi added that the R546-million scandal is not isolated but part of a well-established pattern of state looting disguised as legal compensation.
“For this reason, the party demands the immediate release of all RAF financials, claim records, payment authorisations, and supporting documents relating to foreign-linked payouts — not only for 2024/2025, but for the preceding five financial years.”
Call for a comprehensive audit
He further called for a comprehensive audit covering all foreign claimant payments, including legal, medical, and administrative fees linked to those claims; the names of service providers, law firms, and consultants paid by RAF; a breakdown of active, approved, rejected, and duplicated claims; and evidence trails for all decisions, authorisations, and payouts.
“South Africans deserve full transparency — no hidden numbers, no redacted files, no internal cover-ups.
“We demand a full, independent forensic audit into all foreign-linked payments over the past five years, with the report tabled before parliament and made public.
“This must lead to the suspension without pay of any executive or staff involved in irregular approvals, fraudulent processing, or obstruction of accountability,” he concluded.
RAF spokesperson McIntosh Polela said the organisation is legally obligated to compensate anyone injured in accidents within South Africa, regardless of their legal status.
In a recent report, Acting Minister of Transport Kgosientsho Ramokgopa revealed that a total of R42.94-billion was paid across 128716 claims during the 2024/2025 financial year.
Of this, R548-million was paid in respect of claims where the claimant or injured party is a foreign national — something that ActionSA MP Alan Beesley said raises serious concerns.
“It is quite a big concern that we use taxpayers’ money to pay foreigners. The question is why all of that is happening in our country?” asked Beesley.
