News24 The Lead

News24 probe spurs finance minister to intervene in state pensions admin agency

Loading player...
It’s a fairly obscure government agency, but with a big budget. And now a News24 investigation led by journalist Sikonathi Mantshantsha has spurred the finance minister to appoint a new acting CEO at the state pensions administration agency. This follows evidence uncovered of irregular contracts, including a ghost building lease and ICT deals to the tune of R1.6 billion, and staff targeted for speaking out against the alleged graft. Later in the show, no new date’s been set yet for the Madlanga commission of inquiry into SA policing, but a top Justice director-general has been suspended for the delays .Finally, Mzansi’s crowned a new boerewors champ, and he’s a car salesman from Paarl! You can send host Graeme Raubenheimer a voice note with your questions or thoughts on this episode to: +27 72 562 3179. Mail your comments to: thelead@24.com. Editions drop Monday through Thursday at 19:00 on Spotify, Apple and YouTube.  
Chapters
  • 00:01 Graeme's intro
  • 02:08 Crossing to Sikonathi Mantshantsha
  • 30:33 Trending topic: Madlanga inquiry update
  • 32:21 AD: Driving with J9, a News24 podcast
  • 33:19 And finally: Mzansi's new boerewors champ
  • 34:45 On This Day in SA History & Your Voicenotes!
26 Aug 2025 English South Africa News · Society & Culture

Other recent episodes

Herman Mashaba on refusing to work with Zille, declining a Cabinet post

He led Mzansi's newest green party to fifth place in the 2021 municipal polls, so the question is: what will it take for Herman Mashaba's ActionSA to do it again in 2026? The founder of Black Like Me is our guest this Newsmaker Thursday on News24's The Lead. Mashaba insists…
16 Apr 50 min

What will it take for Roelf Meyer to bend Donald Trump’s ear?

They met behind closed doors on the sidelines of the News24 On the Record Summit in Cape Town in March, and now we finally know the outcome. President Cyril Ramaphosa is deploying former constitutional affairs minister Roelf Meyer to Washington, D.C., to try and salvage what's left of US/SA ties. We've…
15 Apr 26 min

Bribes for debt wipes? Slain Emfuleni whistleblower tipped officials

Fraudulent payments? Missing municipal funds? Bribes to wipe service providers' debt? Forty-year-old mother of one, Martha Mani Rantsofu, was no ordinary junior finance clerk in Gauteng's Emfuleni Local Municipality, because by our accounts, she was a whistleblower knocking on some dangerous doors. While the Gauteng Political Killings Task Team takes a closer look…
14 Apr 29 min

The DA is maturing and getting younger, with Carol Paton

The DA led a landmark elective congress this past weekend, leaving it with an introspective question. In this new Geordin Hill-Lewis era, can the party shed its perceived stigma of being a 20% party, mostly for whites? We'll take stock with our acting political editor, Carol Paton, who's been following…
13 Apr 27 min

Let's show SA who we really are, says DA leader hopeful Dyonase

He thought: What have I got to lose? Let me take on the man widely tipped to lead the DA next. In this edition, The Lead host Graeme Raubenheimer picks Sibusiso Dyonase's brain on his 15-year journey in the DA, who he looks up to, and why challenging Cape Town…
9 Apr 37 min
All episodes