The Department of Social Development (DSD) spent more than R670 000 on hotel accommodation for its chief director of communications, Sandy Godlwana, raising questions about how it manages the public purse.

During this time, Godlwana was appointed in an acting capacity between October 2025 and May 2026 after being transferred from the KwaZulu-Natal office of the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa).

She was permanently appointed to the post in May 2026.

Godlwana's relocation costs from the KwaZulu-Natal Sassa office to the national department of social development in Pretoria amounted to R670 590.50 during her acting tenure.

A Mail & Guardian source alleged that Godlwana continued to stay in hotel accommodation after her permanent appointment, despite departmental provisions that typically allow for a month of relocation support.

"Previously, there were people who acted in the position without requiring relocation costs," the source said.

The two acting incumbents were Nomfundo Xulu-Letsoane, who served in the role for two months between September and October 2025 and Bathembu Futshane, who acted for six months from February 2025.

Godlwana's relocation was seconded in an internal memo by Samuela Boshielo, a senior human resources practitioner and approved by the then-director-general, Peter Netshipale.

"I have read the submission line by line and looked at the recommendations and the supporting documents and hereby declare the submission as quality assured," Boshielo wrote in an internal memorandum recommending the appointment and relocation.

Godlwana has denied the allegations and said the department had to cover her relocation costs as she was moved from another province to assist the communication team at the national office.

"If you are seconded, you can't be paying out of your own cost when you are assisting.

"I wasn't in the position permanently," said Godlwana.

She said the process involved getting another person from another province to assist within the communications department after recent scandals rocked the department and led to the dismissal of former communications director Oliphant.

She said the department's policy allows for the payment of accommodation costs for officials from another province who had not been appointed permanently.

"The policy does allow it and the department hadn't appointed someone permanently. I am within a similar [communications] portfolio within DSD," Godlwana said.

She denied the allegations that the department continued to pay for her hotel accommodation even after her official appointment.

"In all fairness, they have to pay for me because I was called there to support. I also have my own house. Now that I have been appointed, I had to sell my own house in KZN," Godlwana said.

Questions remain about whether the expenditure complied with internal relocation policies.

Although Godlwana said that was within policy requirement, she was unable to point to the specific department policy.

While answering parliamentary questions, Social Development Minister Dina Pule said the department was waiting for a reconciled report on the expenditures.

She said the accommodation expenditure was approved by the deputy director-general for corporate support services, Xolile Brukwe.

Asked whether suitably qualified senior managers were not available at the department's head office to fill the position, Pule said two officials who had previously acted in the role had been shortlisted and interviewed, although Godlwana had been appointed.

"Both officials who had acted in the post were shortlisted and interviewed as part of the recruitment and selection process.

"The successful candidate was appointed based on the outcome of the selection process and the recommendation of the selection committee," Pule said.

Under to the department's organisational structure handbook, the department employs more than 20 chief directors and about 70 directors across its various branches, including welfare services, financial management and community development, many of whom could potentially have acted in the position without incurring relocation costs.

Godlwana defended her relocation as necessary, stating the staff at the national office had been demoralised after recent scandals and needed someone from outside.

"They couldn't get someone within the team because the team was affected emotionally because of all the things that were going on," said Godlwana.

"It was a good thing that they took someone from outside. Although it's not [strictly] outside because I worked in communication at KZN Sassa," she said.

The expenditure comes less than a year after the department faced criticism over an estimated R3 million trip to New York for a United Nations Commission on the Status of Women meeting.

Reports at the time showed that the trip included about R1.3 million on five-star accommodation, R1 million on flights and additional spending on private transfers and butler services.

The former director general, Netshipale, suspended the then-chief director of communications, Lumka Oliphant, on allegations of mismanagement and suspicion that she had leaked details of the expenditure.

Netshipale subsequently told Parliament that the New York expenditure had been "excessive", which drew more criticism about the costs.

He later faced disciplinary processes for signing a five-year contract with the department even though Cabinet had approved his appointment for only 12 months.

The former minister of social development Sisisi Tolashe described Netshipale's five-year contract as a "clerical error" and later dismissed him for signing the contract.

Tolashe was later dismissed by President Cyril Ramaphosa amid growing scandals during her tenure.

In April 2026, a parliamentary probe found that a department employee appointed as a "food aide" worked at Tolashe's East London home as a nanny to her grandchildren and was allegedly required to hand over half her salary to Tolashe's daughter.

The employee allegedly had to split her monthly salary of R15 670, with half being paid to Tolashe's daughter for household expenses.

Tolashe also failed to declare two BAIC Beijing X55 SUVs worth about R1 million donated by the Chinese embassy, which were allegedly registered in her children's names.