Transport Minister Barbara Creecy has officially dissolved the Board of the Road Accident Fund (RAF), citing a breakdown in governance, operational instability, and critical leadership failures that have compromised the Fund’s ability to support road accident victims effectively.
The move follows mounting concerns over the handling of suspended CEO Collins Letsoalo’s case, the organisation’s growing litigation burden, and the failure to fill key executive positions, all of which have fuelled dysfunction within the RAF.
Transport Ministry spokesperson Collen Msibi stated that restoring stability and providing support to victims is the top priority.
“Restoring operational stability and ensuring that the RAF delivers on its core mandate of supporting road accident victims is our top priority,” Msibi stated.
He added that the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) has been approached to determine whether its current probe into the RAF includes the events of the past three months. If not, the Minister will request an expansion of the investigation’s scope.
“The response from the SIU in this regard is eagerly awaited,” said Msibi.
The Road Accident Fund, which is responsible for compensating victims of road accidents, has been the subject of growing public and parliamentary scrutiny.
Parliament’s Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA). Chairperson Songezo Zibi welcomed the dissolution of the board, calling it a necessary intervention given the RAF’s deepening crisis.
“As a committee, we’ve noted several serious underperformances by the board, including its inability to address numerous vacancies in critical leadership posts,” Zibi said.
“We’ve noted as a committee a number of underperformances by the board in overseeing the Road Accident Fund. We’ve highlighted the numerous vacancies in critical posts,” Zibi added.
“The accumulation of default judgments that the Road Accident Fund does not defend amounts to R5 billion at the moment, at a rate of up to R100 million per week. We had said in our committee that this board is failing, so the decision is not surprising.”
Zibi emphasised that appointing a capable interim authority is essential to avoid repeating past mistakes.
“It’s important that whoever steps in on an interim basis is capable, experienced and strong-willed because it doesn’t help to replace one weak and problematic board with another.”
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