RTMC CEO’s suspension due to host of serious whistleblower allegations

A host of serious allegations by a whistleblower against the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) CEO Advocate Makhosini Msibi led to him being placed on precautionary suspension effective from 1 July 2025.

Moneyweb is in possession of four emails sent to the Public Protector by the whistleblower between 7 June 2025 and 1 July 2025 containing allegations against Msibi.

The emails were copied to a number of parties, including the Department of Transport (DoT), parliament’s Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) chair Songezo Zibi and The Presidency.

Some contained “supporting documents”, with the whistleblower making a “formal request for an investigation into financial misconduct, irregular expenditure and governance failures” at the RTMC.

They include allegations of financial misconduct, irregular procurement, abuse of authority and governance failures under the leadership of Msibi.

A ‘pattern’

Eight specific issues were raised, with the whistleblower stressing that these matters reflect “a pattern of financial mismanagement, executive overreach and disregard for governance principles”.

“I respectfully request that your office initiate a full and independent investigation into the matters raised.”

Among the issues raised:

• Acknowledgement of financial crisis without accountability, with it alleged that Msibi on 31 May 2025 issued a circular to all staff acknowledging the RTMC “is in a dire financial state, facing severe liquidity constraints and an unsustainable fiscal position”. A letter allegedly issued by the Auditor-General refers to R33.48 million in overspending against the total RTMC adjusted budget. The whistleblower said this admission is accurate but Msibi “fails to account for the root causes of this crisis, which are directly linked to a series of financial decisions he personally took – often against the explicit recommendations of the Chief Financial Officer (CFO)”.

• Irregular CEO contract extension and misuse of state resources, with it alleged that Msibi’s contract extension is non-compliant with the RTMC Act and did not involve a public advertisement of the post or include the required concurrence from the minister of finance, with these omissions rendering the extension procedurally irregular and potentially unlawful.

RTMC board on board with contract extension?

The whistleblower claims the justification provided by the RTMC board for Msibi’s contract extension was that it was necessary to ensure “stability in management” ahead of national elections.

However, this reason “does not meet the standard for lawful deviation from statutory requirements” and “this rationale sets a dangerous precedent and appears to be a clear abuse of authority and process”.

A further claim is that Msibi’s contract extension does not entitle him to the use of a company vehicle.

Yet Msibi allegedly continues to unlawfully use a state-owned vehicle in direct contravention of this.

“This constitutes a misuse of public assets and a breach of ethical governance principles,” the whistleblower states.

“This matter warrants urgent investigation, as it reflects continued disregard for governance frameworks and a pattern of executive overreach.”

Additional allegations

Some of the other allegations made by the whistleblower relate to:

• Procurement of mobile vehicle testing stations (MVTS) for the Western Cape, which was allegedly approved by Msibi at a cost of about R25 million despite the CFO’s clear written objection due to lack of budget, resulting in concerns about a possible undisclosed relationship between Msibi and the MVTS supplier.

• The approval of salary adjustments for more than 250 traffic officers at a cost of about R22 million, which was allegedly not recommended by the CFO because of affordability concerns but overruled by Msibi.

• The unbudgeted relocation of the RTMC to new offices before December 2024 at a cost of R47 million, including setup and furnishing costs, when this expenditure was allegedly not included in the approved budget.

Minister of Transport Barbara Creecy confirmed on Friday morning during an exclusive one-on-one interview with Moneyweb that Msibi has been suspended.

She says the RTMC board told her it had received allegations against Msibi that it is investigating.

Hastily prepared announcement

Follow-up questions about Msibi’s suspension by Moneyweb to the Transport Ministry and RTMC on Friday resulted in both parties hastily issuing a general media statement shortly before 3.30pm – a few hours after Creecy’s confirmation of Msibi’s suspension to Moneyweb – instead of responding directly Moneyweb.

It is believed the Transport Ministry wanted to avoid a media outlet being the first to disclose Msibi’s suspension.

The DoT said in its statement the RTMC board indicated in its letter to the Transport Ministry that it took the decision to suspend Msibi following whistleblowing allegations of financial misconduct, irregular expenditure and governance failures at the entity.

“Based on the seriousness of the allegations, the board has taken a decision to institute a forensic investigation into these allegations,” it said.

The DoT said Msibi will be on precautionary suspension for a period of 30 days, extendable to 60 days, or any further period as may be reasonably necessary.

Refilwe Mongale has been appointed Interim RTMC CEO with effect from 1 July 2025 until further notice “to ensure continuity and stability within the RTMC while the forensic investigation is underway”.

Why the delay in announcing Msibi’s suspension?

There was a lack of transparency up until Friday about Msibi’s suspension, which is in stark contrast to, for instance, the way the Road Accident Fund (RAF) CEO Collins Letsoalo’s suspension was announced.

The DoT statement said Deputy Minister of Transport Mkhuleko Hlengwa was officially informed of Msibi’s precautionary suspension by the RTMC Board following a board meeting held on 13 June 2025, with Msibi’s precautionary suspension coming into effect on 1 July 2025.

Msibi’s suspension was announced 11 days after the effective date.

In the RAF case, public announcements were made by the Transport Ministry within hours of a RAF board decision about Letsoalo being placed on special leave and subsequently when the RAF board rescinded that decision and suspended Letsoalo for insubordination because of his alleged refusal to attend a meeting of Scopa.

Where there’s smoke …

Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa) CEO Wayne Duvenage says the RTMC would not have suspended Msibi unless the allegations against him were sufficiently substantiated to warrant his suspension.

He says the RTMC had members on the bid adjudication committee for the new driving licence card machine – adding that Outa could clearly see there was wrongdoing, yet the RTMC did not.

The Auditor-General earlier this year found that the award of a tender worth R898 million by the Driving Licence Card Account (DLCA) to IDEMIA Identity and Security South Africa for the production of the new driving licence card was irregular.

This led to Creecy instructing the DoT to lodge a high court application for a declaratory order on how to proceed with the tender given the AG’s audit report.

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