The Minister of Sport and Recreation, Fikile Mbalula, made a statement on the allegations that the Government of South Africa paid a bribe to secure the rights to host the 2010 Fifa Football World Cup.
According to the Minister, he was asked by President Jacob Zuma to call a press conference to clear up the matter, and he made the following remarks during the conference, on Wednesday, June 3, at Safa House.
Mbalula said that, at no time and place did bribery take place, he also had no knowledge of a briefcase with any monies changing hands and claimed that South Africa won the bid to host the Fifa 2010 World Cup in a fair manner.
He also saluted Fifa president Sepp Blatter, after he had resigned from his position at Fifa, as a good friend of South Africa and added that he did a lot for soccer, not only in South Africa, but in Africa.
His statement read as follows (in short, the longer version will be available on the website of the Department of Sport and Recreation South Africa):
The Department of Sport and Recreation South Africa issued its first holding statement on May 28, 2015 on the back of the statement made by the US Attorney General on May 27, 2015. The thrust of this holding statement is summarised in the following three key matters:
1. That the South African government and the LOC has not paid any bribe to anyone to secure the rights to host the 2010 Fifa World Cup.
2. That we will approach the US authorities though the diplomatic channels to share with us their indictment and any related information that they have to enable us to study the facts carefully and to take appropriate action.
3. We further called upon all to desist from commenting about the matter and to afford the national government an opportunity to address the matter through diplomatic channels, as well as calling upon all those who have any information on the matter to come forward and share same with us.
“Whatever the motive of those involved, nothing can detract from the fact that the hosting by South Africa of the 2010 Fifa World Cup, the first on the African continent, remains one of the most beautiful spectacles and successful tournaments the world has ever witnessed in Fifa’s history.” Mbalula said.
“We frown upon any insinuations made in the indictment by the US authorities that suggest that the government of South Africa or any of its citizens have been involved in any wrongdoing, without substantiating the allegations, let alone naming the alleged co-conspirators.
”We refuse to allow the reputation of our republic to be tarnished unduly, without affording the republic and its citizens an opportunity to respond to any allegations made. We view this as an attack on our sovereignty.
“We wish to reiterate our earlier communicated position that the government of the Republic of South Africa and the Local Organising Committee have not expended any public funds in the amount of $10-million towards bribery of anyone to secure the rights to host the 2010 Fifa World Cup.
”Any inferences drawn from the statements attributed to Dr Danny Jordaan, which seek to insinuate that our position is contradictory, is, therefore, not only misleading, but mischievous at best.
”We reaffirm our position that no public funds have been utilised to pay any bribe or to commit any unlawful acts.”
