Previous National Lotteries Commission (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda requested the State Security Company (SSA) in December 2018 to investigate the leaking of documents that exposed lottery corruption.
The NLC’s company secretary at enough time stated media studies she reported were being according to “stolen” information in an affidavit for that SSA.
The SSA did examine. It found the information wasn't a subject of state security and which the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “enough motive” with the media to reveal it.
A whole new board and administration has because taken over the NLC and To date have taken measures to end corruption within the institution.
A Condition Protection Company (SSA) investigation identified the “prevalence” of alleged corruption and irregularities involving the NLC and its beneficiaries “supplied sufficient motive” for exposure because of the media.
The probe into meant “information security breaches and sabotage of NLC operations” was undertaken following then-NLC board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda wrote on the SSA in December 2018 requesting it to research.
Here is
Nevhutanda’s letter,
an affidavit by at present suspended NLC organization secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the request, and
the safety agency’s “confidential” conclusions and suggestions.
Nevhutanda asked the SSA to analyze the position of NLC workers within the alleged leaking of data, and Nene, in her affidavit recognized unique media and stories that she claimed involved these leaks.
From the letter outlining its findings, the SSA advised the NLC that though safeguarding point out info was “a authorized vital aimed at safeguarding the sovereignty and integrity with the point out” this only placed on correctly labeled information and facts.
Even though it didn't say so specifically, the SSA results implied the allegedly leaked details did not tumble into this group.
Appreciably, the SSA manufactured it obvious that the need to protect condition details “does not reduce any specific from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or illegal activity”.
The SSA investigation observed that the NLC facts involved in the alleged breach was “sensitive and privileged in character, although not classified regarding the prescripts of your Minimal Data Stability Standards (Skip)”.
“The leakage in the appropriate delicate official NLC details for the media isn't going to pose a risk to national stability,” the SSA reported, incorporating the influence of the breaches was reputational.
The SSA report uncovered “no evidence of the factual and incriminating character against any with the suspected NLC personnel that may be discovered from the information and facts interrogated”.
Furthermore, it mentioned that “the prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities within the NLC and at its beneficiaries does give enough motive to possess these kinds of uncovered during the media”.
Conspiracy promises
In 2020, Nevhutanda told MPs in the course of a session of Parliament’s trade, sector and Level of competition portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” in which information “stolen” from the NLC was despatched on 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 built in Parliament, which provided ad hominem attacks on GroundUp which reporter but was careful not to name both.
“I came listed here Within this August dwelling final year and described to honourable customers that details about our beneficiaries has been stolen and set in a single condition in America,” he instructed MPs.
“We referred to as on the Condition Protection Agency to return look into the matter due to the fact we are getting experiences that our information and facts is creating dollars for media platforms and journalists,” he reported. “There have been chat, needless to say from one resource, 1 media, that spoke Considerably about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda reported (referring to GroundUp), but didn't tell MPs that the SSA investigation were accomplished almost a yr previously.
Proactive funding was at the heart in the looting in the lottery. It facet-stepped the normal grant course of action. The NLC could itself detect a task to fund and appoint a non-earnings organisation to supervise it.
Following Nevhutanda first advised Parliament in 2018 that he experienced questioned the SSA to analyze the supposed breach, the South African National Editors Forum issued a press release saying that his remarks reflected “a particularly unsafe Frame of mind where by the media is being blamed with the NLC’s inherent troubles”.
“Rather than investigating why hundreds of thousands cannot be accounted for, the NLC has rather tried to Solid doubt on the integrity with the journalists involved and has requested the SSA to analyze their sources.”
Proactive assignments made key
Protection flaws determined from the NLC grant funding process during the SSA’s investigation, appear to have already been employed being an excuse by the NLC to eliminate all proactive-funded tasks from its central grants method.
“In or about 21 December 2019, the classification of all pro-actively funding jobs was heightened to ‘top secret’ and initiatives have been faraway from the grant funding program and preserved manually underneath the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Details Business, Executive Manager Authorized so that you can safeguard [the] data,” Nene reported in her affidavit.
“There was lots of inner discussion, with numerous forwards and backwards, about what to do to plug the alleged leaks”, a source, who was in a senior posture within the NLC at time, advised GroundUp. “Ultimately, the choice was taken to remove all the proactive initiatives through the method and Restrict access to a handful of people today”.
Some in that handful of individuals were being implicated in corruption.
Maselwa, who resigned from your NLC quite a few many years in the past, has been implicated in corruption involving lottery funds. He acquired R4.3-million from lottery cash allotted to develop a library and museum elaborate in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural New music and Arts Expo) which he made use of to make a dwelling within an upmarket gated growth in Pretoria. The house is one of many paid out for with lottery money that were frozen after the Asset Forfeiture Device received a preservation purchase in December 2022.
The politically-related Nevhutanda, who was appointed given that the NLC board chairperson by former President Jacob Zuma in 2009 and was near high-ups in the ANC Management, former NLC former Commissioner Thabang Mampane, and ex-Main running officer Phillemon Letwaba, have all been implicated within the corruption which confused the NLC on their watch.
Also implicated are former board customers William Huma, who resigned right after he was confronted with evidence of how he experienced profited from corrupt lottery grants, and Muthuhadini Madzivhandila, who may have considering that died.
Whenever a new administration, including the overall board and govt, took around 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. Essential documents were being missing. Files held for safekeeping by document storage business Metrofile were signed out and in no way returned.
The NLC was in a position to Get well copies of some หวย หุ้น ช่อง 9 files from its Mimecast e mail archiving method and the laptops in their assistants and assistance team.
News experiences
In his 1 December 2018 letter, resolved to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has mentioned with grave worry feasible facts security breaches along with the unauthorised use and/or dissemination of private information acquired due to performing Formal functions within the Commission by NLC workers. The functions are intended to undermine the integrity from the Fee whilst disrupting the helpful capabilities [of the NLC] and producing insurmountable reputational hurt towards the Commission since the custodian of non-public details entrusted to it by its beneficiaries.”
His ask for for your SSA to investigate was supported within an affidavit by suspended NLC firm secretary, Nomphumelelo Nene.
Nene is at the moment going through a disciplinary inquiry after she was unsuccessful in authorized motion to set aside conclusions of irregular expenditure on her enjoy.
The purpose of her affidavit, Nene stated, was “to report the occasions which transpired referring to details security breaches in the Nationwide Lotteries Commission”.
She mentioned numerous news reviews which she claimed had been the final results of those “breaches” (see at the end of this article).
Nene stated that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that one among its personnel, Sello Qhino, had “provided her categorised NLC Information and persistently inspired her to offer the information to GroundUp”.
Qhino, who blew the whistle over a series of dodgy lottery-funded projects in Kuruman soon after attempts to lift the issue internally were being dismissed, was subsequently fired.
Referring to an eighteen November 2018 post from the Every day Dispatch concerning the misappropriation of Lottery money, Nene explained which the NLC discovered after which suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an staff within the NLC’s East London Business office, who was the husband or wife and also the mom of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s a few children.
Rungqu and Makatse believe Rungqu was punished because Makatse blew the whistle. She was suspended and billed internally, Along with the NLC shelling out R470,000 on lawyers to characterize it, but was identified not responsible and allowed to return to operate.
“The typical Consider these articles is always that [they involve] categorized information and facts referring to proactive funding initiatives,” Nene said in her affidavit.
When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out on the relatives dwelling to go ahead and take warmth off her and his small children. Facing homelessness, he moved into an Workplace in an vacant manufacturing facility belonging to a buddy.
The two Makatse and Qhino are participating in an NLC reparation procedure intended to recognise the damage a lot of people suffered within the palms in the NLC. Apologies and, occasionally, economic payment are expected.
“Some persons had been seriously afflicted really negatively by this … This is admittedly painful,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz informed the Each day Maverick last yr.
“I fulfilled two or three these people. It was just so coronary heart-wrenching that their full life are actually turned the other way up,” said Scholtz.
Among the All those she fulfilled have been Qhino and Makatse.
Protected System essential for whistleblowers
The SSA identified the absence at the time of a suitable channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to turn to your media.
“Failure to have a committed anti-corruption channel will lead to workforce presenting these kinds of cases outside of the NLC,” the SSA claimed in its conclusions.
“Offered the magnitude of corruption in condition establishments, it continues to be 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 sufficiently mitigated against and by ensuring an adequate channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward perform without the need of being intimidated.”
It recommended which the NLC create a “Protected channel” for workers to offer information on any “untoward exercise” that might not stop or discourage workforce from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers coverage, based on the Secured Disclosures Act twenty five of 2000, can be a need.”
Media reports Nene shown
A ten December 2017 report in the Limpopo Mirror about corruption and maladministration involving the Lottery-funded Vhembe Overall health and Conditioning Centre in Limpopo. GroundUp has labored intently with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and operator of your Limpopo Mirror, to show NLC corruption. “The posting experienced features of data not out there in the general public domain, thereby boosting worry on inner Info security breaches. The allegations during the media ended up independently investigated,” Nene explained. “Nonetheless, employees chargeable for divulging categorized information and facts have nevertheless to be determined”;
A 28 January 2018 article revealed via the Dally Dispatch “citing many allegations through the Limpopo Mirror posting published on 10 December 2017 as well as a new allegation regarding a previous worker with the title of Mzukisi Makatse. He was charged and summarily dismissed for your threat prompted into the organisation.”
A sixteen November 2018 report while in the Lowvelder with regards to the misappropriation of NLC cash involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has noted how, Despite getting R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab hasn't been concluded. “The Lowvelder post contained categorised details in terms of NLC coverage, boosting additional problems of interior details 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 facts protection challenges in the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose a couple of dodgy R27.5-million grant to Denzhe Major Care, a hijacked NPO. Nene said GroundUp experienced verified in its story that it absolutely was based upon leaked NLC paperwork. This was Regardless of the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Marketing of Access to Information and facts) request for details with regard to the task, she stated