Labour and Civic Organisation (LACO) has vowed to intensify its campaign to force changes at the Southern African Music Rights Organisation (SAMRO), accusing the organisation of failing to adequately address longstanding concerns over governance, royalties, alleged unlawful dismissals and the handling of a controversial forensic investigation.
In an exclusive interview with Africa Daily, the organisation’s secretary-general, Nhlanhleni Zimu said they have already met with SAMRO management and presented a list of demands, including the removal of CEO Annabell Lebethe and allowing SAMRO member and businessman Owen Ndlovu access to the organisation’s building.
The organisation is also demanding answers over the Fundudzi forensic investigation, the administration and payment of royalties, the composition and conduct of SAMRO’s board, and what it described as unlawful dismissals.
“We are also aware of the Fundudzi report that seems to be ignored, the issue of royalties as well as the issue of the Board and unlawful dismissals. If SAMRO does not listen to us we will be embarking in a vigorous fight,” said Zimu.
The intervention comes as SAMRO continues to face a series of disputes involving its leadership, governance and the treatment of members.
At the centre of some of the tensions is the Fundudzi forensic investigation commissioned by SAMRO’s board. SAMRO has previously said the investigation uncovered alleged fraudulent royalty claims involving certain composers, authors and publishers working with a former employee. The organisation says the matter was referred to law-enforcement authorities and that remedial measures were implemented.
SAMRO has maintained that the full Fundudzi report has not been made public because law-enforcement processes are ongoing. The organisation has rejected claims that the investigation was ignored or covered up, saying it commissioned the probe as part of efforts to strengthen governance and protect members’ royalties.
The dispute involving Ndlovu and Lebethe has added another layer to the growing tensions.
Ndlovu, a SAMRO member and founder of Artists United, previously provided services to SAMRO under a service-level agreement. SAMRO terminated that agreement with effect from 31 March 2025 and subsequently pursued eviction proceedings relating to office space occupied by his business. SAMRO has also accused Ndlovu of threatening and intimidating staff, allegations he has disputed.
In July 2026, however, the Johannesburg Magistrates’ Court handed down a judgment in a protection-order dispute involving Lebethe and Ndlovu. The judgment recorded the deteriorating relationship between the two and noted that separate High Court proceedings concerning attempts to evict Ndlovu’s company from SAMRO’s premises were still pending. The Fundudzi report also featured prominently in the broader dispute between the two parties.
The latest call for Ndlovu to be allowed access to the SAMRO building therefore risks adding pressure to an already protracted legal and institutional dispute.
The organisation’s broader concerns also touch directly on SAMRO’s central mandate: collecting and distributing royalties to composers, authors and publishers.
SAMRO says its royalty distribution system is designed to compensate rights holders according to the use of their musical works, with distributions calculated according to factors including music usage and licence revenue. It also acknowledges the existence of undocumented works, royalties that cannot immediately be distributed because the relevant works or rights holders cannot be adequately identified or verified.
The organisation has nevertheless continued to report substantial royalty distributions. SAMRO said its allocation for the 2025 financial year rose to R630.2 million, compared with R622.2 million the previous year.
LACO’s intervention comes against this backdrop of competing claims, SAMRO insists that its governance and financial systems are being strengthened, while critics and some members continue to question the organisation’s leadership, transparency and handling of internal disputes.
SAMRO has previously defended Lebethe’s leadership and described its executive team as part of an effort to strengthen the organisation. Its own reporting also says the organisation has taken steps to investigate irregular payments and referred suspected criminal conduct to law enforcement.
According to Zimu, the organisation is prepared to escalate its campaign if SAMRO failed to respond to its demands.
The warning sets the stage for a potentially broader confrontation involving SAMRO management, its board, members and organised civic and labour interests over how one of South Africa’s most important music-rights organisations is governed and how it accounts to the creators whose work generates the royalties it administers.
