Gayton McKenzie, the recently appointed Minister of Sport, Arts, and Culture, has put an end to fan travel.
This comes after concerns over the financial hardships faced by South African artists as a result of large sums of money being spent on things other than their work.
McKenzie remarked on his X account on Tuesday that there are sportsmen and artists who battle to raise funds to attend exhibitions and athletic events.
R1.3m spent on super fans
Earlier this year, it was revealed that taxpayers had shelled out at least R1.3-million for so-called “super fans” Mama Joy Chauke and Botha Msila’s travel and accommodation at the Rugby World Cup in France in 2023.
AfriForum said other questions pertaining to Chauke and Msila’s spending during the tournament were unanswered.
The department also failed to provide detailed information about the expenses incurred for these fans’ attendance at other similar sporting events.
In October, the department said in a statement that it was supporting Chauke and Msila’s attendance at the Rugby World Cup.
It said the two are “recognised in the world of sport as the epitome of promoting a winning, active, and inspiring nation”.
“This is one of the primary objectives of the Department of Sport, Arts, and Culture,” the department said.
Critics lambasted
It also lashed out at critics, saying it had noted with concern the negative reactions and comments by some people regarding the presence of Chauke and Msila at the Rugby World Cup to support the Springboks and raise the South African flag.
“It is concerning that when the world recognises their presence, thus celebrating the contribution of South African supporters at the World Cup, two of South Africa’s super fans are receiving criticism and insults from within the country,” said the department at the time.
However, McKenzie said this week: “How do we justify paying for fans? We shall no longer be paying for these trips and will use that money where it is needed the most.”
He continued by saying that he had given the go-ahead to publish a list of all athletes, artists, and other creatives who had received funding from the department, along with the sums and explanations for their grants.
“The time where only a select connected few benefit is over. If you did nothing wrong or didn’t benefit untowardly, you have no reason to fear.
“I have given a clear instruction that the public be made aware of the people that got funding today.
“I was shocked when I realised how many complaining artists are receiving money from the department,” he said.
Impact of Covid-19 on artists
Maskandi star Khuzani Mpungose said Kenzie will be happy to hear that just as the Covid-19 was at its worst, a group of artists turned what was essentially a death sentence for musicians whose livelihoods depend on bookings and shows into something worthwhile.
“We started a soccer competition where teams competed based on different musical genres,” Mpungose said.
“This tournament has grown from what initially was just maskandi versus hip-hop to a knockout competition involving four genres.
“The tournament, which will be played on July 21 between maskandi, hip-hop, gqom, and gospel music, will continue to honour the late AKA and Riky Rick, who participated in the first two tournaments in 2021 and 2022.”
