Former Nationwide Lotteries Commission (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda asked the Condition Stability Company (SSA) in December 2018 to research the leaking of documents that uncovered lottery corruption.
The NLC’s enterprise secretary at the time shown media reports she explained were being dependant on “stolen” information within an affidavit for the SSA.
The SSA did look into. It observed the data was not a make a difference of point out protection and that the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “enough motive” to the media to expose it.
A completely new board and management has due to the fact taken about the NLC and To date have taken measures to end corruption at the establishment.
A Condition Safety Company (SSA) investigation uncovered which the “prevalence” of alleged corruption and irregularities involving the NLC and its beneficiaries “presented enough motive” for exposure via the media.
The probe into meant “information security breaches and sabotage of NLC operations” was undertaken soon after then-NLC board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda wrote on the SSA in December 2018 requesting it to investigate.
Here's
Nevhutanda’s letter,
an affidavit by at this time suspended NLC firm secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the ask for, and
the safety agency’s “private” results and proposals.
Nevhutanda asked the SSA to research the position of NLC staff members within the alleged leaking of information, and Nene, in her affidavit recognized precise media and experiences that she claimed included these leaks.
From the letter outlining its findings, the SSA explained to the NLC that although guarding condition information and facts was “a legal critical directed at guarding the sovereignty and integrity on the condition” this only applied to properly categorized data.
Although it did not say so straight, the SSA findings implied which the allegedly leaked information and facts didn't drop into this category.
Substantially, the SSA manufactured it very clear that the need to shield point out facts “isn't going to stop any individual from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or criminality”.
The SSA investigation discovered the NLC details linked to the alleged breach was “sensitive and privileged in nature, although not categorised regarding the prescripts of your Minimal Facts Security Benchmarks (Overlook)”.
“The leakage with the related sensitive official NLC info for the media will not pose a risk to national stability,” the SSA reported, incorporating that the impact of your breaches was reputational.
The SSA report observed “no evidence of the factual and incriminating nature versus any on the suspected NLC workers which could be recognized from the data and info interrogated”.
It also said that “the prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities throughout the NLC and at its beneficiaries does supply sufficient motive to acquire such exposed inside the media”.
Conspiracy statements
In 2020, Nevhutanda instructed MPs during a session of Parliament’s trade, business and Levels of competition portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” wherein information and facts “stolen” within the NLC was despatched on the US, the place he claimed it had been becoming bought to fund a smear campaign against the NLC.
He was repeating identical statements he experienced Formerly made in Parliament, which involved ad hominem attacks on GroundUp which reporter but was cautious not to name possibly.
“I arrived right here During this August home very last calendar year and noted to honourable associates that information regarding our beneficiaries has been stolen and put in a single point out in the usa,” he told MPs.
“We known as within the State Security Company to come back investigate the issue due to the fact we're obtaining experiences that our facts is creating money for media platforms and journalists,” he claimed. “There's been talk, not surprisingly from a single resource, 1 media, that spoke A great deal about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda said (referring to GroundUp), but failed to convey to MPs that the SSA investigation had been done Just about a 12 months before.
Proactive funding was at the heart on the looting of your lottery. It facet-stepped the normal grant method. The NLC could alone establish a undertaking to fund and appoint a non-profit organisation to oversee it.
After Nevhutanda initially explained to Parliament in 2018 that he experienced questioned the SSA to investigate the meant breach, the South African National Editors Forum issued a press release saying that his remarks mirrored “an incredibly perilous Mind-set the place the media is currently being blamed for your NLC’s inherent complications”.
“In lieu of investigating why millions can not be accounted for, the NLC has instead attempted to Solid question within the integrity from the journalists associated and has requested the SSA to analyze their sources.”
Proactive assignments produced mystery
Stability flaws discovered while in the NLC grant funding procedure throughout the SSA’s investigation, look to have been utilized as an justification because of the NLC to get rid of all proactive-funded initiatives from its central grants procedure.
“In or about 21 December 2019, the classification of all Professional-actively funding tasks was heightened to ‘magic formula’ and initiatives have been faraway from the grant funding technique and maintained manually beneath the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Facts Office environment, Government Supervisor Legal as a way to safeguard [the] facts,” Nene explained in her affidavit.
“There was lots of interior discussion, with numerous back and forth, about what to do to plug the alleged leaks”, a supply, who was within a senior placement on the NLC at time, informed GroundUp. “Ultimately, the decision was taken to eliminate many of the proactive initiatives with the program and Restrict access to a handful of individuals”.
Some in that handful of men and women have been implicated in corruption.
Maselwa, who resigned in the NLC several decades ago, has become implicated in corruption involving lottery funds. He been given R4.3-million from lottery cash allotted to create a library and museum complex in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural Tunes and Arts Expo) which he utilized to create a house in an upmarket gated growth in Pretoria. The assets is among a number of paid for with lottery funds that were frozen after the Asset Forfeiture Unit obtained a preservation purchase in December 2022.
The politically-connected Nevhutanda, who was appointed because the NLC board chairperson by former President Jacob Zuma in 2009 and was close to superior-ups in the ANC Management, former NLC former Commissioner Thabang Mampane, and ex-Main running officer Phillemon Letwaba, have all been implicated inside the corruption which overwhelmed the NLC on their own observe.
Also implicated are former board customers William Huma, who resigned right after he was confronted with proof of how he had profited from corrupt lottery grants, and Muthuhadini Madzivhandila, who may have considering that died.
Whenever a new administration, such as the entire board and government, took around on the NLC in late 2022 and early 2023, they found out a “chaotic mess” inside the documentation regarding proactive funding, much of which was paper-based mostly. Critical files were being lacking. Data files held for safekeeping by doc storage company Metrofile were signed out and never returned.
The NLC was in a position to recover copies of some หวย ลาว ย้อน หลัง paperwork from its Mimecast electronic mail archiving program as well as laptops in their assistants and assistance workers.
News studies
In his one December 2018 letter, resolved to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has observed with grave worry doable facts stability breaches plus the unauthorised use and/or dissemination of confidential details obtained on account of undertaking official capabilities from the Commission by NLC employees. The functions are intended to undermine the integrity with the Commission when disrupting the successful capabilities [from the NLC] and producing insurmountable reputational harm to your Fee because the custodian of non-public facts entrusted to it by its beneficiaries.”
His ask for for the SSA to investigate was supported in an affidavit by suspended NLC organization secretary, Nomphumelelo Nene.
Nene is at this time struggling with a disciplinary inquiry after she was unsuccessful in legal motion to set aside results of irregular expenditure on her observe.
The purpose of her affidavit, Nene said, was “to history the situations which transpired concerning facts protection breaches at the National Lotteries Commission”.
She outlined many news experiences which she claimed have been the results of those “breaches” (see at the conclusion of this post).
Nene said that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that one among its workforce, Sello Qhino, had “offered her labeled NLC Information and facts and persistently inspired her to provide the information to GroundUp”.
Qhino, who blew the whistle on a number of dodgy lottery-funded projects in Kuruman following attempts to lift The difficulty internally ended up overlooked, was subsequently fired.
Referring to an 18 November 2018 post within the Day by day Dispatch about the misappropriation of Lottery funds, Nene reported that the NLC recognized after which suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an employee 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 believe that Rungqu was punished since Makatse blew the whistle. She was suspended and charged internally, Together with the NLC paying R470,000 on lawyers to symbolize it, but was identified not responsible and permitted to return to operate.
“The popular Consider these articles or blog posts is [they involve] labeled info concerning proactive funding initiatives,” Nene mentioned in her affidavit.
When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out of your spouse and children home to take the heat off her and his young children. Facing homelessness, he moved into an Business office within an empty manufacturing facility belonging to a colleague.
Both equally Makatse and Qhino are taking part in an NLC reparation course of action meant to recognise the damage lots of people experienced with the fingers of the NLC. Apologies and, occasionally, money compensation are predicted.
“Some folks were being genuinely affected pretty negatively by this … This is de facto distressing,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz informed the Day by day Maverick final 12 months.
“I achieved a few these men and women. It had been just so coronary heart-wrenching that their whole life have been turned upside down,” explained Scholtz.
Between All those she fulfilled have been Qhino and Makatse.
Safe and sound platform essential for whistleblowers
The SSA located the absence at time of an appropriate channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to turn to the media.
“Failure to possess a dedicated anti-corruption channel will bring about personnel presenting this sort of cases outside of the NLC,” the SSA said in its findings.
“Supplied the magnitude of corruption in point out establishments, it remains critical that it makes certain that the NLC complies with all stability prescripts Which its concentrate is on making certain that illegal and irregular conduct is adequately mitigated in opposition to and by making certain an ample channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward perform without the need of being intimidated.”
It suggested which the NLC build a “Safe and sound channel” for workers to supply info on any “untoward action” that will not prevent or discourage workforce from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers coverage, according to the Shielded Disclosures Act 25 of 2000, is a prerequisite.”
Media reports Nene stated
A ten December 2017 report inside the Limpopo Mirror about corruption and maladministration involving the Lottery-funded Vhembe Health and fitness and Physical fitness Centre in Limpopo. GroundUp has worked carefully with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and proprietor of your Limpopo Mirror, to expose NLC corruption. “The write-up had things of data not available in the general public area, thus elevating problem on inner Details safety breaches. The allegations while in the media have been independently investigated,” Nene mentioned. “Nonetheless, workers liable for divulging classified information and facts have still for being discovered”;
A 28 January 2018 write-up posted through the Dally Dispatch “citing various allegations from your Limpopo Mirror posting printed on ten December 2017 in addition to a new allegation associated with a previous personnel because of the title of Mzukisi Makatse. He was billed and summarily dismissed for that menace induced into the organisation.”
A sixteen November 2018 write-up while in the Lowvelder about the misappropriation of NLC resources involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has described how, in spite of acquiring R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab has not been finished. “The Lowvelder article contained labeled info concerning NLC policy, boosting additional fears of internal data stability breaches,” Nene stated in her affidavit. “The prima facie evidence regarding these allegations didn't warrant an unbiased Investigation, nevertheless [it] highlighted the heightened data protection challenges throughout the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose a few dodgy R27.five-million grant to Denzhe Key Treatment, a hijacked NPO. Nene explained GroundUp had verified in its Tale that it had been determined by leaked NLC documents. This was Regardless of the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Advertising of Entry to Details) ask for for facts with regard to the task, she mentioned