
Road Accident Fund CEO placed on special leave
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Road Accident Fund (RAF), Collins Letsoalo, has been placed on special leave with immediate effect.
In a statement, the Department of Transport said that Deputy Minister Mkhuleko Hlengwa, as the delegated shareholder representative was informed by the board of the RAF of Letsoalo's special leave.
The decision was made at a special meeting on Tuesday, 27 May.
'The CEO will be on special leave until the conclusion of the relevant investigations by the Special Investigations Unit (SIU), or such earlier date as the board may determine.
'The board has indicated that this is a precautionary measure and does not constitute disciplinary action or presumption of guilt,' said the department on Wednesday.
According to the statement, the decision was taken solely in the interest of good governance and as a precautionary step to facilitate ongoing investigative processes.
'It does not imply any prejudgment or adverse finding against the CEO.
'In making this decision, it must be noted that the board exercised its fiduciary duties in terms of the Road Accident Fund Act, 56 of 1996, the Public Finance Management Act, 1 of 1999, and in alignment with the principles of good governance as set out in King IV.'
Meanwhile, Phathutshedzo Lukhwareni will serve as the Acting Chief Executive Officer to ensure continuity of operations.
The Deputy Minister has directed that this matter be placed on the agenda for the board meeting he has called for 9 June 2025. 'Normal' or do you suspect something more sinister?
Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1
Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


3 hours ago
Lesufi to launch Gauteng's tamper-proof number plate system
Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi and the MEC for Transport Kedibone Diale-Tlabela will pilot launch the province's highly anticipated tamper-proof number plate system on Thursday, 5 June. The launch is set to take place at the Nasrec Expo Centre in Johannesburg. The South African previously reported that in December 2022, Lesufi announced the province would roll out new vehicle number plates in 2023 to help combat crime, corruption, vandalism, and lawlessness. He further emphasised this during his State of the Province Address in February 2023. During the launch of the registration process for manufacturers of vehicle number plates in July 2023, Diale-Tlabela said they understand the importance of ensuring that manufacturers and embossers of number plates operate within the bounds of the law. 'Over the years, we have witnessed numerous challenges arising from non-compliant number plates, such as compromised safety, an increase in vehicle-related crime, and a lack of accountability from manufacturers,' she said. On Tuesday, 3 June, Lesufi took to X (previously Twitter) to share the details about the launch. He said fraudulent number plates and cars without proper documentation are at the centre of crime in Gauteng, especially kidnappings, robberies, and murder, as criminals use undocumented cars to commit crimes. 'We are now ready to launch tamper-proof new number plates. A safer GP,' he posted. One of the forensic reports, which the Department of Transport commissioned in 2022, dealt with alleged fraud and maladministration at Gauteng Drivers' Licencing Testing Centres (DLTC). The findings were as follows: Fraudulent optometrist certificates Fee dumping (Fee dumping is the practice of applicants with arrears who apply for vehicle license renewal being allowed to proceed and what they owe in arrears is dumped to other accounts, including the accounts of deceased persons). Collusion between examiners, applicants and driving schools Lifestyle audits – assets not commensurate with salaries Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X, and Bluesky for the latest news.


9 hours ago
Over 700 000 driver's licence cards still need printing
If you were expecting your driver's licence card anytime soon, you're in for some bad news. The Department of Transport (DoT) recently revealed that the backlog of cards that still need to be printed is sitting at a whopping 733 000. According to BusinessTech , the DoT said in a parliamentary Q&A this past week that it did not yet have a clear path forward for procuring new driving licence card printing machines for South Africa. Which means that South Africans are still left relying on the one and only, breakable printing machine in the country. The department noted, however, that the backlog has been reduced by 14 500 cards since the printing machine became operational at the start of May. Although, this does not even begin to scratch the surface of the backlog. At the start of May 2025, the backlog sat at 747 500 after the machine broke down in February this year. Which means that driver's licence applicants still have a long wait ahead of them. BusinessTech also reported that it would require around 40 to 53 days to clear this backlog (not including new card applicantions), as the driver's licence card printer can usually process between 14 000 and 19 000 cards in a 14-hour shift. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X, and Bluesky for the latest news.

IOL News
13 hours ago
- IOL News
Court orders RAF to honour R1. 4 million payment to undocumented Malawian immigrant injured in car crash
The Western Cape High Court has dismissed an application by the Road Accident Fund (RAF) to rescind a judgment mandating the payment of over R1.4 million to a Malawian man who has been in the country illegally. Image: Pexels The Western Cape High Court has dismissed an application by the Road Accident Fund (RAF) to rescind a judgment mandating a payment of over R1.4 million to an undocumented Malawian man. Charles Jeka Chipofya has been living in the country since 1994 and has been married to a South African woman since 2008. They have two children. Despite his long-term residence, his attempts to obtain citizenship through marriage were thwarted due to evident abuse of the system by some African nationals. The Road Accident Fund found itself at the centre of controversy after Chipofya was involved in a severe car accident in Plettenberg Bay in September 2016. He filed a claim with the RAF, culminating in a proposed settlement of over R1.4 million in November 2022. In January 2023, a draft order was presented to the court on mutual consent between the parties, and RAF was ordered to pay Chipofya over R1.4 million. However, two years later, RAF reneged and wanted the court to rescind the order claiming that when it was made, it was unaware that Chipofya was an illegal immigrant. RAF said that when Chipofya submitted a copy of a passport, it referred to him as Charles Chipeta and not as Charles Jeka Chipofya, and this was suspicious. In response to this suspicion, RAF investigated to ascertain the circumstances surrounding his dual identity and it came to light that Chipofya owns two passports, one naming him as Charles Jeka Chipofya and the other as Charles Chipeta. RAF stated that when Chipofya was confronted about having two passports, he tried to attribute the discrepancy to a data capture error. However, in RAF's view, his explanation was unlikely, as it is improbable that such an error could occur. Subsequent to that, RAF said investigations revealed that one of the passports did not exist at the time of the accident. Additionally, the movement system record revealed that the visa on the other passport expired in December 2012. Moreover, there were no records showing that Chipofya left the country using the old passport or that he entered the country with a new passport after December 2012. In RAF's view, this could imply that Chipofya was either not present in the country on the date of the accident or was potentially in the country illegally. RAF argued that the order was erroneously granted and had the court been made aware that Chipofya was an illegal immigrant, the court would not have granted the order. Furthermore, RAF contended that the Immigration Act prohibits illegal immigrants from being in the country and extending claims of damages to illegal immigrants will create an enormous burden on the State. In response, Chipofya's legal representative argued that RAF had prior knowledge of his nationality and legal status before reaching a settlement agreement. Moreover, it was argued that Chipofya never misrepresented his status in the country and the settlement agreement was not based on the assumed existence of his legal status in the country. Judge James Dumisani Lekhuleni who presided over the matter, sided with Chipofya, and noted RAF had reduced the claim amount specifically because Chipofya was an illegal immigrant at the time of the offer, a fact that had been openly discussed during negotiations. "This conclusion is fortified by the fact that RAF's legal representatives advised Chipofya's attorneys that his claim would be reduced because he was an illegal immigrant. This averment was not disputed by the RAF or RAF's counsel," he said. In addition, he said Chipofya's medical reports and some of his documents, showed that he didn't have a valid visa and despite this, RAF settled his claim and consented to have the draft order endorsed in court. Regarding the different names, the judge said Chipofya provided a plausible explanation regarding the names and when RAF made the offer, it was aware of the discrepancies. Judge Lekhuleni emphasised that RAF is legally bound under the RAF Act to provide compensation for losses arising from road accidents, asserting that the Act does not discriminate based on a claimant's immigration status. "In my opinion, the current legislative framework of the RAF Act does not support the fund's position to exclude illegal immigrants from the application of RAF. "Eligibility for the RAF fund is not contingent upon a person's legal status within this country. An individual's legal standing does not influence their eligibility for RAF benefits. Simply put, it is not the person's immigration status in the country that makes a person legible to the RAF benefits," he said. RAF's application was dismissed. [email protected] IOL News Get your news on the go, click here to join the IOL News WhatsApp channel.