Previous Countrywide Lotteries Fee (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda questioned the Point out Stability Company (SSA) in December 2018 to research the leaking of documents that uncovered lottery corruption.
The NLC’s enterprise secretary at time detailed media reviews she stated were according to “stolen” information and facts in an affidavit for the SSA.
The SSA did examine. It discovered the knowledge wasn't a make any difference of state safety and the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “sufficient motive” for that media to show it.
A brand new board and management has due to the fact taken above the NLC and thus far have taken actions to finish corruption on the establishment.
A State Safety Agency (SSA) investigation observed the “prevalence” of alleged corruption and irregularities involving the NLC and its beneficiaries “offered enough motive” for exposure via the media.
The probe into supposed “information stability breaches and sabotage of NLC functions” was undertaken right after then-NLC board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda wrote to your SSA in December 2018 requesting it to research.
Here is
Nevhutanda’s letter,
an affidavit by presently suspended NLC enterprise secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the ask for, and
the security company’s “confidential” results and proposals.
Nevhutanda asked the SSA to research the function of NLC team during the alleged leaking of data, and Nene, in her affidavit recognized distinct media and stories that she claimed involved these leaks.
During the letter outlining its conclusions, the SSA explained to the NLC that even though protecting point out information and facts was “a legal vital targeted at preserving the sovereignty and integrity on the point out” this only applied to properly labeled information and facts.
Although it didn't say so directly, the SSA conclusions implied that the allegedly leaked details did not drop into this group.
Significantly, the SSA produced it very clear that the need to safeguard state details “will not avoid any personal from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or illegal activity”.
The SSA investigation identified which the NLC facts involved with the alleged breach was “sensitive and privileged in character, although not labeled regarding the prescripts from the Minimum amount Details Stability Expectations (Pass up)”.
“The leakage in the applicable sensitive official NLC data into the media doesn't pose a risk to nationwide protection,” the SSA reported, introducing which the impact of the breaches was reputational.
The SSA report discovered “no evidence of the factual and incriminating character in opposition to any on the suspected NLC personnel that can be recognized from the information and details interrogated”.
Additionally, it mentioned that “the prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities inside the NLC and at its beneficiaries does provide sufficient motive to possess these types of exposed during the media”.
Conspiracy claims
In 2020, Nevhutanda instructed MPs in the course of a session of Parliament’s trade, field and Competitiveness portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” in which details “stolen” with the NLC was despatched into the US, where he claimed it was becoming sold to fund a smear marketing campaign against the NLC.
He was repeating similar promises he experienced Formerly created in Parliament, which incorporated ad hominem assaults on GroundUp and this reporter but was careful not to call either.
“I arrived listed here Within this August house very last yr and claimed to honourable associates that specifics of our beneficiaries has become stolen and set in one state in the united states,” he told MPs.
“We referred to as over the State Security Agency to come back check into the make any difference simply because we're acquiring studies that our facts is making dollars for media platforms and journalists,” he claimed. “There was converse, not surprisingly from just one source, one media, that spoke much about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda claimed (referring to GroundUp), but did not convey to MPs the SSA investigation were accomplished almost a 12 months before.
Proactive funding was at the heart with the looting from the lottery. It aspect-stepped the traditional grant procedure. The NLC could by itself establish a venture to fund and appoint a non-gain organisation to oversee it.
Immediately after Nevhutanda very first explained to Parliament in 2018 that he had questioned the SSA to research the meant breach, the South African Countrywide Editors Discussion board issued an announcement indicating that his remarks reflected “an especially risky attitude exactly where the media is becoming blamed for your NLC’s inherent difficulties”.
“As an alternative to investigating why millions cannot be accounted for, the NLC has instead made an effort to Solid question to the integrity from the journalists included and has asked the SSA to investigate their resources.”
Proactive projects built top secret
Protection flaws identified from the NLC grant funding technique throughout the SSA’s investigation, show up to are already applied as an justification with the NLC to eliminate all proactive-funded initiatives from its central grants program.
“In or about 21 December 2019, the classification of all pro-actively funding assignments was heightened to ‘secret’ and tasks have been removed from the grant funding technique and preserved manually beneath the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Data Business office, Executive Manager Authorized as a way to safeguard [the] information and facts,” Nene mentioned in her affidavit.
“There was loads of internal discussion, with numerous forwards and backwards, about what to do to plug the alleged leaks”, a source, who was within a senior placement for the NLC at some time, explained to GroundUp. “Eventually, the choice was taken to get rid of the many proactive initiatives through the technique and limit access to A few men and women”.
Some in that handful of individuals were implicated in corruption.
Maselwa, who resigned within the NLC many a long time back, has actually been implicated in corruption involving lottery funds. He gained R4.3-million from lottery cash allotted to construct a library and museum elaborate in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural Songs and Arts Expo) which he applied to build a property within an upmarket gated development in Pretoria. The home is one of many compensated for with lottery resources which were frozen following the Asset Forfeiture Device received a preservation buy in December 2022.
The politically-linked Nevhutanda, who was appointed since the NLC board chairperson by former President Jacob Zuma in 2009 and was close to high-ups in the ANC Management, former NLC former Commissioner Thabang Mampane, and ex-Main working officer Phillemon Letwaba, have all been implicated inside the corruption which confused the NLC on their own view.
Also implicated are previous board associates William Huma, who resigned after he was confronted with evidence of how he experienced profited from corrupt lottery grants, and Muthuhadini Madzivhandila, that has since died.
Each time a new administration, such as the complete board and government, took over on the NLC in late 2022 and early 2023, they found out a “chaotic mess” within the documentation associated with proactive funding, A great deal of which was paper-based. Crucial paperwork have been missing. Information held for safekeeping by document storage business Metrofile were signed out and never returned.
The NLC was in a position to recover copies of some cat888 files from its Mimecast electronic mail archiving method as well as the laptops of their assistants and help workers.
News reviews
In his one December 2018 letter, dealt with to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has observed with grave worry attainable details security breaches and the unauthorised use and/or dissemination of private details obtained due to carrying out Formal functions from the Commission by NLC staff members. The actions are meant to undermine the integrity of the Commission even though disrupting the effective functions [on the NLC] and producing insurmountable reputational harm for the Commission since the custodian of non-public information and facts entrusted to it by its beneficiaries.”
His ask for with the SSA to analyze was supported within an affidavit by suspended NLC corporation secretary, Nomphumelelo Nene.
Nene is at this time struggling with a disciplinary inquiry just after she was unsuccessful in authorized action to put aside results of irregular expenditure on her view.
The goal of her affidavit, Nene explained, was “to document the events which transpired regarding details stability breaches on the Countrywide Lotteries Commission”.
She shown numerous news stories which she claimed were the outcome of those “breaches” (see at the conclusion of this informative article).
Nene claimed that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that one of its staff, Sello Qhino, had “offered her categorized NLC Details and persistently encouraged her to supply the information to GroundUp”.
Qhino, who blew the whistle with a number of dodgy lottery-funded assignments in Kuruman soon after attempts to lift The problem internally had been ignored, was subsequently fired.
Referring to an eighteen November 2018 post in the Each day Dispatch in regards to the misappropriation of Lottery funds, Nene explained which the NLC recognized after which you can suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an worker from the NLC’s East London Workplace, who was the associate as well as mom of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s three kids.
Rungqu and Makatse imagine Rungqu was punished mainly because Makatse blew the whistle. She was suspended and billed internally, While using the NLC expending R470,000 on legal professionals to stand for it, but was located not responsible and permitted to return to work.
“The prevalent Think about these articles is [they include] categorized data regarding proactive funding assignments,” Nene mentioned in her affidavit.
When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out of the relatives household to take the heat off her and his kids. Facing homelessness, he moved into an Business in an vacant factory belonging to a buddy.
Both Makatse and Qhino are participating in an NLC reparation approach meant to recognise the harm lots of people suffered at the fingers on the NLC. Apologies and, occasionally, financial compensation are expected.
“Some folks were being seriously impacted really negatively by this … This is basically painful,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz told the Everyday Maverick final year.
“I achieved two or three these persons. It had been just so heart-wrenching that their total life are turned the wrong way up,” said Scholtz.
Amid Those people she satisfied ended up Qhino and Makatse.
Safe platform necessary for whistleblowers
The SSA located the absence at some time of a proper channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to turn to your media.
“Failure to possess a devoted anti-corruption channel will lead to staff presenting this sort of situations outside of the NLC,” the SSA reported in its results.
“Offered the magnitude of corruption in state institutions, it remains crucial that it makes certain that the NLC complies with all safety prescripts Which its target is on making sure that illegal and irregular perform is adequately mitigated versus and by guaranteeing an satisfactory channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward conduct devoid of being intimidated.”
It encouraged that the NLC create a “Secure channel” for workers to provide info on any “untoward action” that might not avert or discourage workers from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers coverage, based on the Safeguarded Disclosures Act 25 of 2000, is often a need.”
Media experiences Nene outlined
A ten December 2017 report within the Limpopo Mirror about corruption and maladministration involving the Lottery-funded Vhembe Well being and Physical fitness Centre in Limpopo. GroundUp has worked carefully with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and owner in the Limpopo Mirror, to show NLC corruption. “The short article had things of knowledge not obtainable in the general public domain, therefore boosting concern on inside Information safety breaches. The allegations in the media had been independently investigated,” Nene explained. “However, workers answerable for divulging labeled facts have still to get recognized”;
A 28 January 2018 post published via the Dally Dispatch “citing a lot of allegations through the Limpopo Mirror post posted on 10 December 2017 in addition to a new allegation regarding a previous worker because of the name of Mzukisi Makatse. He was charged and summarily dismissed for that threat triggered to your organisation.”
A sixteen November 2018 article inside the Lowvelder concerning the misappropriation of NLC funds involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has noted how, Regardless of getting R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab has never been finished. “The Lowvelder post contained classified info with regards to NLC policy, boosting even further worries of internal information and facts protection breaches,” Nene stated in her affidavit. “The prima facie proof with regard to these allegations didn't warrant an unbiased Investigation, on the other hand [it] highlighted the heightened info protection risks inside the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose a few dodgy R27.five-million grant to Denzhe Main Care, a hijacked NPO. Nene explained GroundUp experienced verified in its Tale that it absolutely was according to leaked NLC documents. This was despite the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Promotion of Entry to Details) request for specifics with regards to the challenge, she reported
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