The DA has laid criminal charges against Danny Jordaan, the Nelson Mandela Bay executive mayor and also president of the SA Footaball Association.
DA MP and spokesperson on Sport, Solly Malatsi, said they also laid criminal charges in Cape Town on Monday against the former President of SAFA, Molefi Oliphant.
The official opposition wants the SA Police Service to conducts its own investigation into the allegation that a $10 million dollar bribe had been paid to the North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football in return for votes to host the 2010 World Cup.
Sports Minister, Fikile Mbalula, has denied that the payment amounted to a bribe.
Malatsi said the laying of charges against Jordaan and Oliphant was the next logical step after attempts to get them to account to parliament had been thwarted by the ANC.
"We have tried to initiate a parliamentary process to get the former bid and local organising committee members and the SAFA leadership to come to parliament to account and this was suffocated by the ANC majority on our portfolio (committee). We believe that the laying of charges for a criminal investigation is the most logical step at this time," said Malatsi.
Malatsi said that it is incumbent for South African law enforcement agencies to investigate the allegations even though an investigation by US authorities is already at an advanced stage.
He told Algoa FM News that a domestic investigation is necessary so that those who are alleged to be complicit can be brought to book or even cleared of any wrongdoing.
"The bottom line remains the fact very serious questions remain about the nature of this transaction and the very questionable and suspicious background that led to it. We believe that our law enforcement authorities, through the form of a criminal investigation, would be the most sensible way to of clearing this dark cloud and putting all these allegations to bed," he said.
Meanwhile, Jordaan's spokesperson, Lungisi Ncame, has labelled the DA's move as "a desperate publicity stunt to get attention."
"He (Jordaan) has got nothing to do with the Fifa investigation or the investigation by the FBI and we think it's got everything to do with the fact that the DA has lost the plot with regards to the Nelson Mandela Metro and they're trying every move now to tarnish the executive mayor's name. So, that's what this matter is about and we are really not bothered by the step that the took today (Monday)," Ncame said.
