Thursday, 9 February 2023

You're Welcome, South Africa

Last week, Daily Maverick’s Rebecca Davis exposed how the South African Department of Tourism was planning to sponsor the English football club, Tottenham Hotspur, in a deal worth almost R1-billion. 

This week, that deal is no longer on the table. "The Portfolio Committee on Tourism has told South African Tourism and the Minister of the Department of Tourism, Ms Lindiwe Sisulu, that the R1 billion Tottenham Hotspur Football Club deal must be cancelled with immediate effect. Furthermore, the portfolio committee will investigate the deal," the committee said in a statement.

Ja, nee. 

It’s sometimes difficult to relay the impact of our journalism – and why supporting it is important – so we decided to communicate it in the form that South Africans embrace so well: the GIF. 

Here’s a visual representation of Daily Maverick’s impact on the SA Tourism/Tottenham Hotspur R1-billion Deal: 

Before you think this has gone to our heads, it hasn’t. We know our work is impossible without the support of you, our reader, and the trust we have cultivated with the public. Unlike acting CEO of SA Tourism Themba Khumalo’s take on the matter, where he stated: “I think whoever is responsible for that leak needs to be isolated. It is un-South African to behave in that manner.”

“Isolated.” 

Ja, nee. 

We believe that whistle-blowers are the absolute heroes of our nation. Without them, we would never have been able to expose the #GuptaLeaks – or any of our other investigations. We at Daily Maverick did expose the brainless deal but only because of a courageous whistle-blower. We’re able to report on the deal because just over 20,000 of our readers make a voluntary contribution to us monthly to keep our work going. It is because of these Maverick Insiders that we haven’t been forced to put up a paywall. It is because of these good people that our work, and the work of whistle-blowers, is not hidden behind a paywall for only the economically elite to read. 

If you appreciate our work, what we accomplished last week and what we continue to achieve, then please consider signing up to Maverick Insider and becoming part of our community. 

We can’t do it without you. 

So… to say it precisely:

You’re welcome, South Africa. 

Thank you, South Africa. 

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