The Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture, Gayton McKenzie, has dissolved the Council of the National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), describing the decision as an act of institutional accountability rather than a finding of dishonesty against any individual member.
“I thank every member for the time they gave to the Foundation and to South African film. But accountability at entity level cannot be optional, and it cannot wait until somebody is caught,” the Minister said in a statement.
The decision followed a process that began on 7 July 2026, when the Minister wrote to the then Chairperson of the Council and expressly set out the legal defects in the Council's appointment of one of its own members as Acting Chief Executive Officer.
The Minister identified two lawful alternatives available to the Council. However, the Council did not adopt either alternative, and the arrangement remained in place.
On 14 September 2026, the Minister issued a Notice of Intention to dissolve the Council and invited written representations. The Council responded on 18 September 2026. Those representations were considered in full before the decision was taken.
On 23 September 2026, the Minister dissolved the NFVF Council in terms of section 6(10) of the National Film and Video Foundation Act 73 of 1997.
“In its own written representations, the Council accepted that it had appreciated that section 13(4) of the Act does not permit the appointment of an Acting Chief Executive Officer from outside the Foundation, and stated that it does not maintain that the appointment was lawful.”
“The Council further accepted that the resignation of the member concerned was defective for want of compliance with section 7(3)(e) of the Act, with the result that she held executive office while remaining a member of the Council – contrary to section 6(8)(a) and in direct conflict with the Council's own oversight function,” the Ministry said.
McKenzie said the Council knew what the law required.
“I gave this Council written notice of the problem in July and offered it two lawful ways out. It took neither. The arrangement ended only once dissolution was on the table, which eroded the last of my confidence in this Council,” he said.
Other factors also contributed to the decision, including the recent resignation of the Council Chairperson and the handling of the former Acting CEO’s suspension - another matter in which the Council ignored guidance from the Ministry.
The Minister directed that the following arrangements take effect immediately:
- The Chief Executive Officer of the Foundation will assume the responsibilities of the accounting authority in terms of the Public Finance Management Act until a new Council is appointed.
- Approved and committed funding, including funding under the current PESP6 Blockbuster cycle, will continue to be processed. The Department is working directly with the Foundation's management to ensure that no approved disbursement to filmmakers, production houses, cast or crew is interrupted.
- The independent investigation into whistleblower allegations at the Foundation, which is being conducted by the Department's Internal Audit unit rather than the Council, will proceed unaffected.
- The process of appointing a new Council will commence in accordance with section 6 of the Act.
“I am acutely aware of what happened the last time this Council was dissolved, when funding approvals stalled for three months.”
“That is exactly why we shall move quickly to appoint a new Council, and to ensure that processing continues in the legal manner. The people who depend on this Foundation did nothing wrong, and they will not be made to carry the cost of governance issues that were not of their making,” McKenzie said. -SAnews.gov.za
