By Palesa Matlala
- The South African National Defence Union wants an inquiry into claims that soldiers in Cuba were asked to contribute their own money.
- The union says investigators must establish who authorised the collections, who handled the soldiers’ money and where the cash eventually went.
South African soldiers sent to Cuba for military training were reportedly asked to dig into their own pockets to help needy Cubans.
Now their union wants to know who asked for the money, who collected it and where it went.
The South African National Defence Union has called for an official inquiry into claims that members of the South African National Defence Force were pressured to make “voluntary” contributions from their allowances.
The union says those allowances form part of soldiers’ pay and should not be treated as money that senior officers can use for other projects.
Union national secretary Pikkie Greeff said the Defence Act allows for a board of inquiry to investigate what happened.
“There should be a Board of Inquiry,” Greeff said.
He said an investigation should establish who authorised the request for money, who collected it and what happened to the cash.
Greeff also questioned why soldiers were being asked to use their own allowances for what he described as a “non-military project”.
“That’s completely unacceptable. Soldier salaries are not a slush fund,” he said.
The claims have emerged against the backdrop of South Africa’s long and costly military relationship with Cuba.
South African soldiers have been sent to Cuba for training for more than a decade.
Recent figures provided by Defence and Military Veterans Minister Angie Motshekga showed that 350 South African National Defence Force members completed training at Cuban military institutions, with 316 working in fields linked to that training.
Between 2021 and 2025, tuition fees for South African National Defence Force members studying in Cuba came to more than R34-million.
Stipends, accommodation, travel, living costs and official visits over the same period totalled more than R612-million.
The Auditor-General has previously raised concerns about the cost of parts of the Cuban programme. A 2023 finding said equivalent military medical training in Cuba was 136% more expensive than studying locally.
Greeff said an inquiry should establish whether the latest collection of money from soldiers was legal and properly authorised.
If everything was above board, he said, that should be made clear.
But if investigators find misconduct, he wants those responsible held accountable.
Pictured above: South African National Defence Force members.
Image source: SA National Defence Force/Facebook Page
