Criminal Charges Laid Against Minister Sisisi Tolashe

ActionSA has today undertaken three important actions to hold Social Development Minister Sisisi Tolashe accountable for deliberately lying to Parliament to conceal undeclared and undue luxury gifts she received, reportedly worth a million rand, from Chinese officials, which we believe may have criminal implications.

Today, we have: 

• Opened a criminal case against Minister Tolashe for corruption;
• Submitted a complaint to the Public Protector for breaches of the Executive Members’ Ethics Act; and
• Laid a formal complaint with Parliament’s Ethics Committee for breaches of the Code of Conduct and Disclosure of Members’ Interests.

In response to ActionSA’s parliamentary question, Minister Tolashe denied personally receiving a gift of two SUVs, claiming instead that the vehicles were donated to the ANC Women’s League (ANCWL).

This explanation is fatally undermined by the facts. The ANCWL has publicly denied any knowledge of these vehicles. Official records show that the vehicles were registered in the names of the Minister’s children, and one of the vehicles has already been sold, indicating private benefit.

South Africans are now faced with two equally troubling possibilities: Either the Minister received these vehicles as personal gifts and failed to declare them, in breach of the law; or the ANC failed to declare a foreign donation of significant value to the Electoral Commission, in violation of funding laws.

In either case, this points to serious misconduct and a blatant disregard for transparency and accountability. The acceptance of high-value “gifts” from a foreign government—particularly where those assets are concealed through family members—raises grave concerns about corruption, undue influence, and abuse of public office. This is a textbook example of how public power can be abused for private gain. 

For a Minister to act so brazenly reflects a deeply entrenched culture of impunity within the GNU government. It confirms what millions of South Africans already suspect: that those in power believe the rules do not apply to them.

This is precisely why ActionSA has introduced its Zero-Tolerance Corruption Bill to end the era of impunity and ensure that those who abuse positions of public trust face real consequences. We re-iterate our call for the President to immediately fire the Minister and make an example of her to show that such actions will not be tolerated.

ActionSA Gauteng Powerhouse: Focused initially on Johannesburg, Ekurhuleni, and Tshwane.