R50m Brazil Soccer Trip Amid Water Crisis

R8,7m paid to Brazilian academy for 18 'street kids and Aids orphans'

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A NORTH West municipality has defended its multimillion-rand expenditure on a group of teenage soccer players to train in Brazil for a year.

The project, said Themba Gwabeni, the mayor of the Ngaka Modiri Molema District Municipality, was "worthwhile" - even though the municipality is battling an acute water shortage.

Gwabeni said spending R361 000 on each of the 18 boys sent to Brazil was aimed at balancing service delivery with community empowerment.

This is amid criticism that the money could have been used to address pressing issues such as water provision.

He wouldn't say how much had already been paid. But reports say R8,7-million had been paid to an academy before the boys left for Brazil last month.

Gwabeni explained that some of the boys, who are between the ages of 13 and 17, sent to Ole Brazil Clube Soccer Academy were streetchildren and Aids orphans.

The mayor has also rejected claims by the council's former municipal manager, Tshepiso Ramphele, that his municipality could end up spending about R50-million for the boys' entire stay in Brazil.

The boys are expected to stay there for 14 months.

Ramphele opposed the idea in a memorandum to the council late last year, saying training services were going to cost the council about $756 000 (R7,5-million) with an additional $215 (R2 150) in subsistence or daily allowance for each boy.

This, he said, excluded other costs such as "transport, meals, a Portuguese course, school uniform, medical plan, couriers and access to the Internet".

Gwabeni disputed that the cost would run to R50-million: "We're spending R361 000 on each boy, and the amount includes meals, training, school and other things".

But he could not refute claims levelled by Ramphele that the boys' 14-month stay in Brazil was never budgeted for.


Gwabeni confirmed that funds were sourced from the service delivery budget, which included much-needed water provision, to fund the Brazilian expedition, following a review of the budget by the council.

Ramphele claimed that about R2,5-million was taken off the water-provision budget alone to fund the trip.

He also said he was suspended by Gwabeni in December, primarily because he had initially opposed this "wasteful" expenditure and refused to approve payments.

"As an accounting officer, I was ordered to approve these payments to satisfy my boss. But I had the responsibility to keep within the law. So in the end I reported the unlawful expenditure to the National Treasury," he said.

"I refused to pay because it was clear that our budget was going to be dried up through the Brazil contracts."

The council's action, which led to Ramphele's subsequent dismissal this week, has been defended by Gwabeni.

He said Ramphele was "defiant" and was also facing charges, including being absent from work without leave.

"The municipal manager had the tendency to oppose most of our proposed projects.

"Municipal managers advise us as politicians, but they can't insist that their advice is always correct," Gwabeni said.

But Ramphele argued that he could not stand back and fold his arms while the council made costly decisions at the expense of service delivery.

"It obviously did not mean anything to the mayor when I advised the council that the municipality was not generating any income and that it was best to focus on pressing issues like service delivery, rather than spending so much money on soccer training," he said.

It would also impact on the council if it was seen to be mismanaging its budgets, he added. "It lessens our chances of acquiring a loan from financial institutions in case of a serious need."

Meanwhile, Gwabeni said charges laid against him by Ramphele and the South African Municipal Workers' Union for alleged mismanagement of municipal funds were unfounded.

Ramphele said he was advised by the National Treasury to lay charges against his boss when he reported the breaching of section 163 of the Municipal Finance Management Act, which bars municipalities from acquiring goods and services denominated in a foreign currency.

"Those allegations will have to be proved in court. I have not done any procurement, and although I signed an agreement, there's no way a mayor can sign cheques," he said.

According to Ramphele, Gwabeni went on a Brazilian spending spree last year, paying R1,9-million for three weeks' training of six youths to learn about the artificial insemination of cattle before the soccer trip idea surfaced.

Gwabeni defended the expenditure, saying existing cattle-breeding projects would benefit from skills acquired by the six individuals in Brazil.

"He also took a handful of artists with him to Brazil last year when the town of Embu celebrated its centenary, at a cost of R4,5-million," Ramphele said.

Gwabeni said he was "not sure how much was spent and can't dispute that amount, but can confirm that a sizeable group of artists went there to exchange arts and culture".

He explained that his municipality needs R1,2-billion to end the water crisis.

Municipal workers in the district have downed tools, calling for Ramphele's reinstatement and Gwabeni's suspension.