The Democratic Alliance (DA) wants Danny Jordaan removed as president of the South African Football Association (Safa) and Gronie Hluyo removed as Safa CFO, as the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) calls for a thorough and independent probe into Safa’s finances.

Jordaan who has been charged with fraud after allegedly misappropriating R1.3-million of Safa’s funds for his personal benefit, has been arrested along with Hluyo.

DA spokesperson on sport, arts and culture Joe McGluwa said Jordaan and Hluyo‘s removal would ensure that Safa can begin the necessary process of rebuilding itself on a foundation of transparency and ethical management.

McGluwa pointed out that these new allegations, alongside previous accusations of misconduct, underscore the deep-rooted issues within Safa’s leadership and raised serious concerns about governance and accountability within the organisation.

The DA said it had been vindicated, having called on authorities to investigate allegations of misconduct within Safa for years.

“This arrest underscores the gravity of the issues we have continuously highlighted, including a lack of accountability and transparency at the highest levels of Safa’s management,” McGluwa said.

“We believe that Jordaan and Hluyo’s actions have damaged the integrity of Safa and eroded public trust in South African football. Their alleged misconduct warrants immediate action to restore confidence in Safa’s leadership,” he added.

Meanwhile, the EFF said the probe should be made into how funds were used during Jordaan’s tenure as president.

“There must be specific focus on where the finances of Safa have been directed to under his tenure, including procurement and payments of service providers which are most likely linked to the African National Congress (ANC) and benefited the ANC as an organisation,” it claimed.

The party is of the view that Jordaan and his associates were using funds meant for sporting development for personal interests and patronage.

The EFF said it had long identified Jordaan as a “corrupt ANC-deployee in Safa” and described him as someone with “no sophisticated knowledge of football or sports in general and exists in the association as a proxy for corrupt ANC interests”.

“It has been a wonder for all logical citizens of this country how someone can move from being a mayor of Nelson Mandela Bay municipality to a president of a footballing association without any verification track-record in the footballing world,” the EFF said.

The party went on to highlight how under Jordaan, football in the country has been neglected and that development in the sport has been non-existent.