The Democratic Alliance (DA) says it has repeatedly asked Sport, Arts and Culture Minister Gayton McKenzie over the past two months to disclose the full cost of the department's delegation to the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
According to the DA, the Minister's latest written response estimated the delegation's expenditure at R31 million. The party says the figure is an estimate and has called for more detailed information.
The DA says it has submitted two requests seeking details about the delegation's members, the total budget and how the trip was funded. It claims the responses contained limited information, differing expenditure figures and no clear explanation of the funding arrangements.
The party says the Minister later disclosed that the delegation included 20 artists and 18 departmental officials, including the Minister, two support staff, the Director-General and a 14-member project team. It says the officials' travel was estimated to have cost just under R8 million.
The DA says the names of the delegation members and the final cost of the trip have not yet been disclosed. It plans to submit further parliamentary questions requesting the outstanding information and an exact date for when it will be made available.
The party also says it will ask Parliament's Portfolio Committee on Sport, Arts and Culture to require Minister McKenzie to account for the expenditure and provide a detailed breakdown of the delegation's costs.
According to the DA, the Minister's latest written response estimated the delegation's expenditure at R31 million. The party says the figure is an estimate and has called for more detailed information.
The DA says it has submitted two requests seeking details about the delegation's members, the total budget and how the trip was funded. It claims the responses contained limited information, differing expenditure figures and no clear explanation of the funding arrangements.
The party says the Minister later disclosed that the delegation included 20 artists and 18 departmental officials, including the Minister, two support staff, the Director-General and a 14-member project team. It says the officials' travel was estimated to have cost just under R8 million.
The DA says the names of the delegation members and the final cost of the trip have not yet been disclosed. It plans to submit further parliamentary questions requesting the outstanding information and an exact date for when it will be made available.
The party also says it will ask Parliament's Portfolio Committee on Sport, Arts and Culture to require Minister McKenzie to account for the expenditure and provide a detailed breakdown of the delegation's costs.