SA Tourism Dept to pay R33M to pay Trevor Noah to do a 5-minute advert ‘to promote SA to the world’

Information reaching Kossyderrickent has it that SA Tourism Department to pay R33M to pay Trevor Noah to do a 5-minute advert ‘to promote SA to the world’…

Globally renowned comedian and former US TV show host, Trevor Noah, may have a healthy bank balance after a seven-year stint as host of The Daily Show, but even punting his home country now seemingly comes with a hefty price tag.

The superstar is set to be paid R33 million to promote South Africa as a tourist destination.

It raised the ire of parliamentarians, who called on the tourism department to halt the venture.

Tourism Minister Patricia de Lille made it clear that the bill would be footed by the Tourism Business Council of SA [TBCSA], and no government funding would be spent on the venture.

The Chairperson of the committee, Ms Tandi Mahambehlala, asked Minister Patricia de Lille who led the department to appraise the committee on, among other things, suspension of executive members of the South African Tourism (SAT) by the SAT Board, announcement by Minister de Lille about the issue of Trevor Noah that will cost South Africans R33 million for a five minutes promotional video advert and to report on Ms Kholeka Zama who the committee found to have committed perjury.

Although Minister de Lille, presented the update to the committee on the implementation of the recommendations, she did not cover all the relevant issues, but mainly focused on the appointment of the South African Tourism Board. The committee decried delays in the envisaged finalisation of the appointment of the new Board in October as the call for nominations closed in June 2023.

Earlier this week, De Lille defended the matter in Parliament after the chairperson of the tourism committee, Tandi Mahambehlala, called on the department to halt the plan.

A whistleblower apparently informed the committee that public money was being spent on the venture.

But De Lille said: “I am not mocking anyone. Anything that a whistleblower says must be looked at further or investigated. In this instance, I can tell you that the whistleblower did not give you the full story.