Previous National Lotteries Commission (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda questioned the State Safety Agency (SSA) in December 2018 to research the leaking of paperwork that exposed lottery corruption.
The NLC’s enterprise secretary at some time listed media reports she stated had been based upon “stolen” facts in an affidavit for your SSA.
The SSA did look into. It observed the knowledge wasn't a subject of state protection and that the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “enough motive” for your media to show it.
A whole new board and administration has considering that taken more than the NLC and To this point have taken steps to finish corruption on the institution.
A Condition Protection Company (SSA) investigation found that the “prevalence” of alleged corruption and irregularities involving the NLC and its beneficiaries “offered sufficient motive” for exposure with the media.
The probe into intended “facts protection breaches and sabotage of NLC operations” was undertaken following then-NLC board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda wrote for the SSA in December 2018 requesting it to investigate.
Here's
Nevhutanda’s letter,
an affidavit by at this time suspended NLC corporation secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the request, and
the safety agency’s “private” results and proposals.
Nevhutanda requested the SSA to research the position of NLC staff members in the alleged leaking of data, and Nene, in her affidavit recognized distinct media and experiences that she claimed involved these leaks.
During the letter outlining its conclusions, the SSA instructed the NLC that although guarding point out data was “a legal imperative aimed at shielding the sovereignty and integrity in the point out” this only applied to properly labeled information.
Although it did not say so specifically, the SSA results implied which the allegedly leaked facts didn't tumble into this category.
Appreciably, the SSA created it clear that the need to safeguard point out info “won't stop any personal from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or criminal activity”.
The SSA investigation identified that the NLC info linked to the alleged breach was “delicate and privileged in nature, although not classified when it comes to the prescripts of your Minimal Facts Stability Standards (Pass up)”.
“The leakage in the appropriate sensitive Formal NLC details into the media doesn't pose a threat to national stability,” the SSA reported, introducing the affect in the breaches was reputational.
The SSA report identified “no proof of a factual and incriminating nature from any on the suspected NLC workers that could be determined from the information and knowledge interrogated”.
Furthermore, it mentioned that “the prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities inside the NLC and at its beneficiaries does present enough motive to possess these types of uncovered within the media”.
Conspiracy claims
In 2020, Nevhutanda advised MPs all through a session of Parliament’s trade, industry and Competitiveness portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” where facts “stolen” with the NLC was despatched for the US, the place he claimed it was being 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 mindful not to call possibly.
“I came listed here in this August property past yr and documented to honourable users that information about our beneficiaries is stolen and place in one condition in the united states,” he advised MPs.
“We identified as over the Point out Protection Agency to come look into the matter simply because we've been finding studies that our details is generating revenue for media platforms and journalists,” he explained. “There has been communicate, naturally from 1 supply, one media, that spoke Substantially about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda stated (referring to GroundUp), but did not notify MPs which the SSA investigation had been finished Just about a calendar year before.
Proactive funding was at the guts of the looting in the lottery. It aspect-stepped the normal grant method. The NLC could by itself recognize a undertaking to fund and appoint a non-income organisation to oversee it.
Following Nevhutanda initial told Parliament in 2018 that he experienced asked the SSA to analyze the intended breach, the South African National Editors Discussion board issued a statement indicating that his remarks reflected “an extremely risky Mindset where by the media is currently being blamed with the NLC’s inherent troubles”.
“Rather than investigating why thousands and thousands can not be accounted for, the NLC has as a substitute made an effort to Solid question over the integrity in the journalists associated and it has questioned the SSA to research their sources.”
Proactive tasks built mystery
Stability flaws discovered within the NLC grant funding program in the course of the SSA’s investigation, show up to are actually made use of as an excuse from the NLC to get rid of all proactive-funded assignments from its central grants procedure.
“In or about 21 December 2019, the classification of all pro-actively funding initiatives was heightened to ‘solution’ and tasks have been removed from the grant funding procedure and managed manually under the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Info Business office, Government Manager Legal to be able to safeguard [the] details,” Nene stated in her affidavit.
“There was a lot of inner dialogue, with lots of back and forth, about what to do to plug the alleged leaks”, a source, who was in a senior posture for the NLC at the time, explained to GroundUp. “In the end, the decision was taken to get rid of each of the proactive assignments with the technique and limit entry to a handful of people”.
Some in that handful of men and women ended up implicated in corruption.
Maselwa, who resigned from your NLC several several years back, has been implicated in corruption involving lottery money. He gained R4.three-million from lottery funds allocated to develop a library and museum elaborate in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural Songs and Arts Expo) which he utilised to develop a house within an upmarket gated improvement in Pretoria. The property is one of a number of paid for with lottery funds which were frozen once the Asset Forfeiture Device attained a preservation get in December 2022.
The politically-related Nevhutanda, who was appointed as being the NLC board chairperson by previous President Jacob Zuma in 2009 and was close to higher-ups within the ANC Management, former NLC former Commissioner Thabang Mampane, and ex-Main working officer Phillemon Letwaba, have all been implicated in the corruption which overcome the NLC on their check out.
Also implicated are former board users William Huma, who resigned immediately after he was confronted with evidence of how he had profited from corrupt lottery grants, and Muthuhadini Madzivhandila, who may have due to the fact died.
When a new administration, such as the full board and executive, took in excess of at the NLC in late 2022 and early 2023, they identified a “chaotic mess” from the documentation relating to proactive funding, Significantly of which was paper-based mostly. Critical paperwork ended up lacking. Information held for safekeeping by document storage organization Metrofile had been signed out and by no means returned.
The NLC was capable of recover copies of some hihuay files from its Mimecast electronic mail archiving method along with the laptops of their assistants and assist staff members.
Information stories
In his one December 2018 letter, tackled to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has famous with grave concern feasible info security breaches and the unauthorised use and/or dissemination of private details obtained on account of doing official features within the Fee by NLC workers. The activities are intended to undermine the integrity of your Commission when disrupting the efficient features [of your NLC] and leading to insurmountable reputational damage into the Commission because the custodian of non-public facts entrusted to it by its beneficiaries.”
His ask for with the SSA to analyze was supported within an affidavit by suspended NLC enterprise secretary, Nomphumelelo Nene.
Nene is currently facing a disciplinary inquiry following she was unsuccessful in legal motion to set aside findings of irregular expenditure on her watch.
The goal of her affidavit, Nene claimed, was “to file the activities which transpired relating to information and facts protection breaches in the Countrywide Lotteries Commission”.
She stated different information reports which she claimed ended up the outcomes of those “breaches” (see at the conclusion of this informative article).
Nene reported that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that certainly one of its staff members, Sello Qhino, experienced “delivered her classified NLC Info and persistently encouraged her to supply the information to GroundUp”.
Qhino, who blew the whistle on a series of dodgy lottery-funded projects in Kuruman following attempts to lift The problem internally have been dismissed, was subsequently fired.
Referring to an 18 November 2018 posting during the Each day Dispatch with regards to the misappropriation of Lottery money, Nene said the NLC identified after which you can suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an worker during the NLC’s East London Business office, who was the partner plus the mom of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s three young children.
Rungqu and Makatse consider Rungqu was punished since Makatse blew the whistle. She was suspended and charged internally, Along with the NLC spending R470,000 on lawyers to signify it, but was identified not guilty and allowed to return to operate.
“The prevalent Consider these content is usually that [they require] categorized details referring to proactive funding projects,” Nene claimed in her affidavit.
When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out on the loved ones dwelling to take the warmth off her and his youngsters. Struggling with homelessness, he moved into an Business office within an empty manufacturing facility belonging to an acquaintance.
Each Makatse and Qhino are participating in an NLC reparation process intended to recognise the harm a lot of people experienced at the hands from the NLC. Apologies and, in some instances, fiscal compensation are anticipated.
“Some men and women have been genuinely impacted really negatively by this … This is basically painful,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz told the Day by day Maverick very last yr.
“I achieved a handful of these folks. It was just so heart-wrenching that their full lives have been turned the wrong way up,” reported Scholtz.
Amongst Those people she met have been Qhino and Makatse.
Risk-free platform required for whistleblowers
The SSA discovered the absence at some time of a suitable channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to turn to your media.
“Failure to have a devoted anti-corruption channel will bring about staff members presenting these circumstances beyond the NLC,” the SSA said in its findings.
“Supplied the magnitude of corruption in point out institutions, it stays very important that it ensures that the NLC complies with all security prescripts and that its target is on making certain that illegal and irregular conduct is adequately mitigated against and by ensuring an adequate channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward perform without the need of being intimidated.”
It recommended the NLC build a “Risk-free channel” for employees to offer information on any “untoward action” that could not prevent or discourage staff from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers plan, based upon the Guarded Disclosures Act twenty five of 2000, is usually a need.”
Media studies Nene mentioned
A 10 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 labored carefully with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and operator of your Limpopo Mirror, to show NLC corruption. “The article experienced features of data not out there in the general public domain, thereby raising issue on inside Details security breaches. The allegations in the media ended up independently investigated,” Nene mentioned. “Nevertheless, workforce responsible for divulging labeled info have still for being determined”;
A 28 January 2018 post revealed by the Dally Dispatch “citing quite a few allegations within the Limpopo Mirror post printed on 10 December 2017 plus a new allegation regarding a previous employee with the identify of Mzukisi Makatse. He was billed and summarily dismissed for your threat brought on to the organisation.”
A sixteen November 2018 short article from the Lowvelder about the misappropriation of NLC resources involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has claimed how, Regardless of receiving R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab has not been completed. “The Lowvelder short article contained categorized information and facts with regard to NLC plan, elevating even further issues of inside information protection breaches,” Nene reported in her affidavit. “The prima facie proof with regard to these allegations did not warrant an independent Investigation, nonetheless [it] highlighted the heightened data stability risks inside the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose a couple of dodgy R27.5-million grant to Denzhe Main Treatment, a hijacked NPO. Nene reported GroundUp experienced confirmed in its Tale that it had been based upon leaked NLC paperwork. This was Regardless of the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Marketing of Access to Facts) request for aspects with regards to the undertaking, she reported