ActionSA demands immediate resignations of Minister Blade Nzimande and NSFAS Board Chairperson amid bombshell kickback allegations

7 January 2024

ActionSA calls on Higher Education Minister, Blade Nzimande and NSFAS Board Chairperson, Ernest Khosa, to immediately resign, following explosive reporting by OUTA, revealing the pair as alleged recipients of kickbacks related to the fraudulent Direct Payment of Allowances scheme.

In audio recordings released by OUTA, the Minister and Board Chairperson are implicated in the fraudulent scheme orchestrated by corrupt tenderpreneurs to loot NSFAS. Allegedly aided by the protection of the pair, contractors paid them kickbacks to secure lucrative contracts and shield themselves from scrutiny, exposing a web of corruption that, unsurprisingly, extends to a cabinet minister.

This revelation comes as no surprise, confirming our earlier concerns about the questionable nature of the Minister and NSFAS Board's staunch defence of the corrupt Direct Payment of Allowances scheme for months. Despite clear indicators suggesting it was nothing more than an elaborate fraud, both the Minister and Board Chairperson continued defending the scheme until the Werkmans Attorneys' Report rendered that defence untenable.

Shamefully, as tens of thousands of students suffered the consequences of the incompetence of fraudulently appointed service providers administering the allowance scheme, we are once again confronted with the reality that a network of unscrupulous tenderpreneurs and public office bearers prioritised filling their pockets over the collective well-being of nearly 1 million students.

In light of this shocking revelation, ActionSA demands the immediate resignation of both Minister Nzimande and NSFAS Board Chairperson. Additionally, we call on law enforcement to ensure that every implicated person is identified and held accountable to the fullest extent of the law.

Issued by Hluphi Gafane, ActionSA Youth Forum Chairperson, 7 January 2024