Millions of rands from a lottery grant intended for a rural cycling project were paid to Athletics South Africa (ASA) in 2018. The R3-million payment came from a non-profit working with victims of gender-based violence called Make Me Movement (MMM), which was hijacked by lottery looters and used to apply for a R18-million grant for “development in rural areas”.
But the cycling project never took place, and ASA says it has no knowledge of the R3-million funds. Meanwhile, Cycling SA—the national body that oversees cycling in South Africa—says “cycling development falls outside of ASA’s area of responsibility and expertise.”
ASA spokesperson Sifiso Cele said the body only became aware of the R3-million payment last week, when GroundUp sent a query.
ASA’s finance manager at the time of the mysterious payment was Terrence Magogodela. He had already been implicated in another dubious National Lotteries Commission (NLC) grant application, in which he falsely claimed to be the director of a multimillion-rand athletics track project in Kimberley.
Magogodela was listed as a respondent in a 2022 Special Tribunal preservation order related to that project. He later admitted to using part of the funds to cover legal fees and property transfer costs for his new house.
Despite these controversies, Magogodela was promoted and is now ASA’s acting chief executive officer.
Around April last year, Magogodela repaid nearly R400,000 of the misappropriated lottery funds. The SIU noted that he could still be prosecuted. His attorney, Dev Maharaj, told GroundUp that he would be “very surprised if Magogodela is prosecuted as he has co-operated fully with the NPA and expects to be a witness for the state.”
When asked about the R3-million payment, Magogodela said: “Non-profit organisations such as ASA are expected to keep records up to five years. The dates mentioned in the graphics are around seven years ago, and those records are most difficult to retrieve and may have been disposed of.”
He added: “Please let us have more details regarding the issue and the source documents that you’ve seen to enable us to consider whether we are able to provide any clarity.”
SIU Graphic Revelation
The R3-million payment to ASA by MMM was highlighted in a Special Investigating Unit (SIU) graphic dated 9 September 2018. It illustrated how millions from the R18-million MMM grant were corruptly misappropriated.
The graphic showed that the main beneficiaries to be Collin Tshisimba and his life partner Fulufhelo Promise Kharivhe. The SIU identified the couple as key figures in looting the NLC.
GroundUp sent a query to Tshisimba and asked him to forward it to Kharivhe. His sole response: “Voetsek.”
Last month, the Special Tribunal issued a preservation order freezing a smallholding in Centurion that was bought with funds from the MMM’s fraudulent cycling project.
The couple are among 16 people and entities named in the order. The Centurion smallholding is the seventh property courts have frozen that was purchased with lottery funds linked to the couple. It was registered under Black Tshisimba, one of Tshisimba’s companies.
Payment Mystery
It remains unclear why ASA was paid money earmarked for cycling development.
Cycling SA President Qondisa Ngwenya said his organization had no knowledge of such a lottery-funded project in 2018.
“Given the reported amount involved, a development initiative of this scale would have certainly drawn the attention of the federation and been communicated across our structures,” he said. “Cycling development falls outside of ASA’s area of responsibility and expertise.”
Funding on the scale granted to MMM “would have made a significant impact on the development of cycling, particularly in underserved communities,” he added.
“As highlighted by the Limpopo Cycling leadership, this could have enabled the establishment of community-based cycling hubs equipped with training and racing bikes, training programmes for mechanics and entry-level coaches, and talent identification initiatives focused on youth from previously disadvantaged backgrounds.”
ASA’s Lottery Millions
ASA has long been one of the largest beneficiaries of lottery funding. Since 2002, it has received over R156-million, while its provincial affiliates have received a further R85-million in grants.
Former ASA president Aleck Skosana and ex-vice president Harold Adams previously served on the NLC’s sport, arts, and culture distribution agency (DA), which adjudicates grant applications. Both were members of the sports DA when tens of millions of rands were granted to ASA and its affiliates.
Skosana was ASA president at the time of the R3-million payment. He did not respond to questions sent to him via WhatsApp.
Adams said: “During 2018 and 2019 I stepped back from all positions in sport to receive treatment of a life-threatening disease. Therefore, I do not know anything about the money paid to ASA as per your enquiry. I do not know of any investigation into ASA as I am not part of the board anymore.”
Parliamentary Scrutiny
ASA was grilled in Parliament last month over alleged abuse of an official credit card by its president James Moloi, who allegedly used it for transactions at taverns, shisanyamas, and bottle stores.
In response, Sports Minister Gayton McKenzie announced that his department would conduct a forensic audit into ASA’s spending.
