24th April 2024
Transnet was responding to SABC Sport questions about the latest developments at SOE following the electricity cut-off on Tuesday with the school said to be having a municipal bill of around R1,3 million.
They have not hidden that after encountering their own financial difficulties, including well-documented corruption-related cases in the State Capture Commission of Inquiry, they had to scale down on their sponsorship properties.
“Transnet has been the sole funder of the school for many years, and in the past five years alone has invested over R100 million into the school. Since Transnet got involved in the initiative in 1995, the amount invested by Transnet is well over R200 million.
“Transnet’s financial situation has been well publicised and given that the CSI Funding is based on the company’s net profit after tax, the Foundation’s budget has been declining over the years.
“Following the 2022 review and decision to exit from the sponsorship, Transnet duly engaged SAFA, the Trustees and the school,” the company explained the reasons behind their exit.
SOE is a footballing academy that has been in existence for over 30 years and helped to produce top talents like former Bafana Bafana captain Steven Pienaar, Bernard Parker, Dillon Sheppard, Keagan Dolly, Phakamani Mahlambi, Aubrey Modiba to the latest sensations Relebohile Mofokeng of Orlando Pirates and Mamelodi Sundowns’ Siyabonga Mabena.
The Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) was supposed to take over the running of the school from 1 April 2024 but that process is taking a bit longer and based on the negotiations Transnet was expecting that GDE would have taken over by now.
“To ensure a responsible exit, Transnet and SAFA embarked on a process to secure a replacement donor for the school. The Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) agreed to take over the school on a going concern basis.
“Given that the agreement was finalised during the 2023 financial year, the department requested Transnet to continue with the financial support at the school until 31 March 2024, after which the GDE will take over the operations at the school,” explained Transnet to SABC Sport about the delays about of GDE takeover.
SABC Sport also understands that the state’s freight company, is working around the clock to resolve issues from the previous financial year, including the municipal bill.
“Transnet is aware of the current issues, and these have also been escalated to the Premier of the province for intervention. All Transnet obligations up to the end of March 2024 are being concluded,” the company confirmed.
Staff at the SOE also downed tools today and staged a walk-in at the Transnet offices in Braamfontein, where they were hoping to meet the senior management and enquire about their future.
This followed an SMS they received on Wednesday morning about possible salary delays since Transnet did not pay anything for April 2024.