WeeklySA_AdminPRESSURE: Assistant State Attorney Simbongile Siyali has called for a dedicated entity to tackle backlog of thousands of Road Accident Fund cases…
By Justin Brown
South Africa’s judicial system is so clogged with Road Accident Fund (RAF) cases that a top judicial official has called for an RAF tribunal.
The RAF, a government agency that compensates people for losses resulting from vehicle accidents, receives most of its income from the RAF levy, currently at R2.18 per litre on petrol and diesel. The fund has been in disarray for years.
A judge of the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria has said the RAF’s “chaotic approach to litigation” has resulted in huge losses of public money.
In a ruling last June, Judge Jan Swanepoel said the RAF did not deal with its matters properly, does not send lawyers to court to oppose applications or, if it does, does not provide them with any instructions.
This resulted in “default” judgments. The fund would then apply to rescind the judgments, often on baseless grounds.
“In this manner huge sums of money, public money, it must be emphasised, are lost,” said Swanepoel.
Now Simbongile Siyali, assistant State Attorney in Johannesburg, has made the case for a special tribunal in a piece published in December 2025 by the Law Society of South Africa’s (LSSA) magazine, De Rebus. The LSSA represents South Africa’s attorneys.
Siyali said the government had intended the RAF to be efficient, but laying a claim has become a cumbersome, litigious process that has overwhelmed the judiciary and burdened claimants.
“The mounting backlog of RAF cases – often stretching into years before resolution – has eroded public confidence in the system,” he wrote.
Siyali also pointed out that high courts are ill-suited to deal efficiently with the technical and repetitive nature of RAF claims.
“Against this backdrop, the establishment of a specialised tribunal dedicated exclusively to RAF matters emerges not merely as an administrative convenience but as a constitutional necessity.”
The huge RAF case backlog had profound human consequences, he said.
“Many RAF claimants are individuals who have suffered serious bodily injuries, loss of income or the death of a breadwinner.”
He said there were other specialised courts, including the Labour Court, the Competition Tribunal, the Land Claims Court, the Tax Court and the Electoral Court.
A dedicated tribunal could develop institutional expertise and standardise approaches to damages assessment.
“In doing so, it would improve not only the speed of adjudication but also the substantive fairness of outcomes.”
A RAF tribunal would comprise adjudicators – possibly senior judges, senior magistrates, and legal practitioners – who have significant experience in personal injury and insurance law. The tribunal would be cost-effective, he said.
“The current model is extraordinarily expensive for claimants and the Fund.”
“The time has come for bold reform. Establishing a specialised tribunal for RAF disputes would not only unclog the courts but would mark a decisive step toward a more efficient, responsive and humane justice system – one that truly delivers on the constitutional promise of access to justice for all.”
Parliament’s Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA) is currently holding an inquiry into the RAF.
SCOPA member and ActionSA MP Alan Beesley said it was painfully clear that the RAF “is completely broken”.
He said ActionSA would support the establishment of a specialised RAF tribunal.
“If urgent changes are not implemented, the RAF horror show will continue, and the clogging up of the justice system will get considerably worse,” Beesley said.
DA MP and SCOPA member Patrick Atkinson told GroundUp the DA would support any action that would help streamline the resolution of RAF claims.
“The establishment of a RAF tribunal that would deal specifically with RAF matters would go some way to alleviating the burden on both the courts, as they stand, with court rolls clogged with RAF matters, and speed up the finalisation of claims.”
But Atkinson warned that an RAF tribunal would be a partial resolution for a “completely dysfunctional process”. He said RAF court cases could be reduced by running an efficient settlement system where the RAF would make offers to claimants based on a transparent menu of payouts for a specified list of injuries and their severity.
“If run efficiently, far fewer cases would end up in court, and lawyers would have to balance the value of an immediate settlement versus a protracted court battle that may not yield much more for their clients.”
ANC MP and SCOPA member Helen Neale-May said she was unable to comment
GroundUp emailed SCOPA chairperson Songezo Zibi’s spokesperson but no response had been received at the time of publication.
Wayne Duvenage, the chief executive of Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (OUTA) said he would support a dedicated RAF tribunal.
‘We believe that the RAF entity has been badly managed and fraught with political interference over the past decade to 15 years,” he said. – GroundUp
MIRROR Briefs
MANDELA’S ITEMS TO BE SOLD
The Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) has dismissed – with costs – SA Heritage Resource Agency’s (SAHRA) bid to prevent the auction of former statesman Nelson Mandela’s personal items.
SAHRA lodged an application for leave to appeal after the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria overturned an interdict sought by SAHRA against Madiba’s eldest daughter, Makaziwe Mandela.
In court papers, the SAHRA said it learned of the planned sale of the items in December 2021 and argued that 29 of the items had been declared heritage items and should not have been taken out of the country. However, Makaziwe made the case that the items were not heritage objects and the court dismissed SAHRA’s application for an interdict. saying there was little evidence to support the allegation the items were heritage objects as envisaged in the Heritage Act.
The items up for auction included Madiba’s “personal and only identification book (ID)”, starting at $75,000 (roughly R1.4 million. A key to the Robben Island prison cell where Mandela was imprisoned could be one of the items. Others included a Madiba shirt, gifts from statesmen and institutions, his walking stick, his Bible, handwritten letters and his hearing aids- all with a collective value of about R38 million. Mandela died in 2013 at the age of 95. He led the African National Congress in its struggle against apartheid – a system of legally enforced racism – and spent 27 years in prison. – Lehlohonolo Lehana.
EX LOTTERY OFFICIAL’S PENSION HALTED
The Special Investigating Unit (SIU) has been granted a preservation order by the Special Tribunal to interdict the R500 000 pension payout to former National Lotteries Commission (NLC) official, Sibonelo Vilakazi. He was the former Client Liaison Officer of the NLC in the KwaZulu-Natal branch. The preservation order stems from an SIU investigation, in which Vilakazi allegedly exploited his position to enable his spouse, Nosipho Zanele Zuma, to receive 48 payments totalling R31.2 million from entities benefiting from NLC grants. The funds were funnelled through Zuma’s company, ZZET Enterprises and purchased luxury vehicles and properties, including two Toyota Quantum’s, a Toyota Hilux and two real estate properties.
A report by the Financial Intelligence Centre states that ZZET Enterprises received multiple electronic fund transfer payments from several care centres and football clubs of approximately R32 259 707.00. The SIU investigations showed that more than 400 care centres and football clubs made payments to accounts linked to Vilakazi and Zuma from money received from the NLC between 2019 and 2023. Previously, the SIU obtained an order to freeze approximately R2.4 million held in four bank accounts linked to Vilakazi and Zuma. “On the recommendation of the SIU, the NLC initiated a disciplinary process. The disciplinary process, conducted from 29 November 2023 to 1 August 2024, found Vilakazi guilty of all charges and dismissed him on 4 October 2024,” the SIU said in a statement. – SAnews.gov.za
JOB SEEKER NABBED FOR BRIBE
A 22-year-old suspect appeared before the Pretoria North Magistrate’s Court on Friday for attempting to bribe a senior Tshwane Metro Police official. The suspect was arrested by members of the Pretoria-based Hawks’ Serious Corruption Investigation (SCI) unit. It is alleged that on January 9, 2026, a Commissioner from the Tshwane Metropolitan Police Department received an email from the suspect, who claimed to be an unsuccessful applicant in the City of Tshwane recruitment process. In the email, the suspect allegedly requested the Commissioner’s assistance to secure her appointment and offered a gratification of R10 000 in exchange for facilitating the process. The matter was subsequently reported to the Pretoria Hawks’ SCI for further investigation.
On January 22, 2026, a police operation was conducted, which culminated in the arrest of the suspect after she allegedly handed over an amount of R3 000 to the complainant at Wonderboom Junction Shopping Centre.
The Provincial Head of the Hawks in Gauteng, Major General Ebrahim Kadwa, commended the Serious Corruption Investigation team for their swift response to the complaint. He further urged public officials to promptly report any acts of corruption to the Hawks. – SAnews.gov.za
Engineers to prevent dam collapse
The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) has issued a warning to the public that the privately owned Senteeko Dam near Barberton is at risk of imminent failure.
Fullview understands Engineers have been dispatched to assess the privately owned dam after reports of structural risk, with communities downstream being warned to prepare for possible evacuation.
The dam is used for irrigation purposes, has been assessed as structurally unsafe following an emergency safety inspection conducted by the Department’s Dam Safety Office.
According to DWS, the assessment confirmed the dam’s spillway structure has suffered severe and irreversible deterioration. This includes advanced erosion and undercutting, which have led to significant structural instability.
The department’s spokesperson, Wisane Mavasa, said an emergency safety assessment by its dam safety office confirmed that the dam’s spillway structure has suffered severe and irreversible deterioration, including advanced erosion and undercutting leading to structural instability
“Failure of the dam is imminent and may occur without further warning,” she said. – Fullview
