Sanral board chair Themba Mhambi took home a startling R3-million in board fees over the past financial year, more than double that of former Transnet chair Popo Molefe or Eskom chair Malegapuru Makgoba in 2022. 

This makes Mhambi one of the highest-earning chairpersons in the public sector, despite chairing one of the smaller entities. Non-executive directors are paid a daily rate approved by the minister responsible for the entity. The more meetings held, the more the board fees earned.

Over 2022/23, Sanral held 24 board meetings, 19 of which were "special board meetings". 

But, while Sanral achieved an unqualified audit, it underperformed during the period under review. It resurfaced only half of the km of road network it had planned to complete, and strengthened and rebuilt only half the km it had planned to complete. 

Sanral has also been unable to draw down on the R22.7-billion in debt relief provided by the Treasury in last year's medium-term budget policy statement. While the Treasury has paid over the funds, Sanral has yet to meet the bailout conditions. These include an independent review of the board and its procurement policies. This still needs to be done, even though a full year has lapsed. 

In her report, the AG says that should the conditions not be met and the bailout fail to materialise, Sanral would face "material uncertainty" on its going concern status.

The R22.7-billion from the Treasury was intended to compensate Sanral for unpaid e-tolls accumulated over time. It was part of a deal to end e-tolls, including the Gauteng Provincial Government. Under the scheme, Treasury would pay 70% of the debt (R22.7-billion) while Gauteng would pay 30%, and also take over the funding of the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project. 

While the Treasury kept its side of the bargain, Gauteng still needs to come up with the lump sum to repay the 30% of debt and an alternative funding mechanism for the highway system. 

The pinpointing of the board's competence and Sanral's procurement policy by the Treasury arose because of a particularly controversial decision on how large tenders would be evaluated. The dispute over project approval dates back to 2022, when Mhambi's board passed a resolution to require that in all tenders, the consulting engineering firm that designed the tender document may not be involved in evaluating the tender. 

This is a deviation from standard practice in both the private and public sectors. Because the design of a tender for a large project requires detailed technical work, the consulting engineer who designs the specs is usually part of the technical team to evaluate the bids, as they are most familiar with the technical requirements. 

Two officials who did not follow this instruction – Chief Financial Officer Inge Mulder and head of supply chain management Inba Thumbiran – have been suspended, and await a disciplinary hearing. The board cancelled three very large tenders – one of which was for the Mtentu Bridge project – that had been awarded. They were later re-evaluated by the DBSA and awarded to Chinese firms. In a press conference last month called to respond to allegations in press reports over the disputed tenders, Mhambi doubled down on the controversial project evaluation methodology and insisted it would not be changed.

He also responded to allegations that he was not suitably qualified to lead Sanral. Mhambi was a university academic lecturing English literature before he joined the public sector in a serious of administrative and rescue jobs for several of the Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETAs). 

Mhambi fumed at reporters and said that proof of his diligence and fairness as a chair was evidenced by the length of time for which board meetings lasted. 

"Our meetings will start at 9 in the morning and end at 11 at night. For one simple reason, I believe in giving everybody, including the madman of the village, the opportunity to speak and to state their views," he said.