Former Nationwide Lotteries Commission (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda asked the Point out Safety Agency (SSA) in December 2018 to analyze the leaking of files that uncovered lottery corruption.
The NLC’s enterprise secretary at time shown media reports she claimed have been depending on “stolen” facts within an affidavit with the SSA.
The SSA did look into. It uncovered the information wasn't a make any difference of condition stability and the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “enough motive” to the media to show it.
A completely new board and management has because taken about the NLC and So far have taken actions to finish corruption within the institution.
A State Safety Agency (SSA) investigation observed which the “prevalence” of alleged corruption and irregularities involving the NLC and its beneficiaries “provided ample motive” for exposure from the media.
The probe into supposed “details safety breaches and sabotage of NLC operations” was carried out after then-NLC board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda wrote to the SSA in December 2018 requesting it to analyze.
Here is
Nevhutanda’s letter,
an affidavit by at present suspended NLC organization secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the ask for, and
the security company’s “confidential” findings and proposals.
Nevhutanda asked the SSA to analyze the part of NLC staff from the alleged leaking of information, and Nene, in her affidavit recognized unique media and studies that she claimed associated these leaks.
Within the letter outlining its results, the SSA instructed the NLC that while safeguarding condition information and facts was “a lawful crucial geared toward safeguarding the sovereignty and integrity on the condition” this only applied to appropriately categorised information and facts.
Even though it did not say so immediately, the SSA findings implied which the allegedly leaked data did not tumble into this group.
Substantially, the SSA produced it clear that the need to protect condition information “won't avoid any individual from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or criminal activity”.
The SSA investigation uncovered that the NLC data linked to the alleged breach was “delicate and privileged in mother nature, but not classified regarding the prescripts with the Minimum amount Information Security Requirements (Skip)”.
“The leakage in the pertinent sensitive Formal NLC facts to your media isn't going to pose a risk to national protection,” the SSA explained, adding which the effect of the breaches was reputational.
The SSA report uncovered “no evidence of the factual and incriminating nature from any from the suspected NLC staff members that may be determined from the data and info interrogated”.
It also stated that “the prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities inside the NLC and at its beneficiaries does give sufficient motive to acquire such uncovered in the media”.
Conspiracy claims
In 2020, Nevhutanda told MPs in the course of a session of Parliament’s trade, market and Competitiveness portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” through which details “stolen” in the NLC was despatched on the US, in which he claimed it absolutely was currently being sold to fund a smear marketing campaign against the NLC.
He was repeating very similar claims he had Beforehand produced in Parliament, which involved ad hominem attacks on GroundUp and this reporter but was thorough not to call either.
“I arrived listed here Within this August household final 12 months and documented to honourable associates that specifics of our beneficiaries is stolen and place in one state in the usa,” he explained to MPs.
“We referred to as to the Condition Protection Agency to come back explore the subject simply because we are acquiring studies that our facts is making funds for media platforms and journalists,” he reported. “There has been talk, of course from 1 resource, just one media, that spoke Substantially about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda mentioned (referring to GroundUp), but didn't tell MPs the SSA investigation were completed Pretty much a yr previously.
Proactive funding was at the heart from the looting in the lottery. It side-stepped the normal grant process. The NLC could alone detect a challenge to fund and appoint a non-financial gain organisation to oversee it.
Following Nevhutanda first explained to Parliament in 2018 that he had questioned the SSA to investigate the meant breach, the South African National Editors Forum issued a press release declaring that his remarks mirrored “a particularly perilous Perspective where by the media is becoming blamed for that NLC’s inherent problems”.
“In lieu of investigating why tens of millions can not be accounted for, the NLC has rather tried to cast question on the integrity of the journalists involved and it has requested the SSA to research their sources.”
Proactive jobs built solution
Protection flaws recognized in the NLC grant funding procedure over the SSA’s investigation, seem to happen to be made use of as an excuse by the NLC to get rid of all proactive-funded jobs from its central grants program.
“In or about 21 December 2019, the classification of all Professional-actively funding jobs was heightened to ‘key’ and initiatives were removed from the grant funding program and preserved manually beneath the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Facts Office, Executive Supervisor Lawful in order to safeguard [the] information,” Nene said in her affidavit.
“There was a lot of interior dialogue, with a lot of back and forth, about how to proceed to plug the alleged leaks”, a supply, who was inside a senior posture with the NLC at the time, explained to GroundUp. “Ultimately, the choice was taken to remove many of the proactive assignments within the program and Restrict access to a handful of men and women”.
Some in that handful of folks were implicated in corruption.
Maselwa, who resigned through the NLC quite a few years ago, is implicated in corruption involving lottery cash. He acquired R4.3-million from lottery money allocated to construct a library and museum complicated in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural Music and Arts Expo) which he utilized to build a house within an upmarket gated advancement in Pretoria. The home is among many paid for with lottery cash that were frozen following the Asset Forfeiture Unit received a preservation order in December 2022.
The politically-linked Nevhutanda, who was appointed as the NLC board chairperson by former President Jacob Zuma in 2009 and was near higher-ups from the ANC Management, former NLC former Commissioner Thabang Mampane, and ex-chief running officer Phillemon Letwaba, have all been implicated in the corruption which overwhelmed the NLC on their look at.
Also implicated are previous board customers William Huma, who resigned just after he was confronted with proof of how he experienced profited from corrupt lottery grants, and Muthuhadini Madzivhandila, who may have since died.
When a new administration, such as the entire board and govt, took about with the NLC in late 2022 and early 2023, they uncovered a “chaotic mess” while in the documentation referring to proactive funding, A lot of which was paper-centered. Essential documents ended up missing. Documents held for safekeeping by doc storage firm Metrofile were signed out and in no way returned.
The NLC was ready to Recuperate copies of some ตรวจ หวย ย้อน หลัง files from its Mimecast e mail archiving program and also the laptops in their assistants and assistance team.
News experiences
In his 1 December 2018 letter, dealt with to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has mentioned with grave worry feasible facts stability breaches as well as the unauthorised use and/or dissemination of private facts attained as a result of executing official functions inside the Commission by NLC staff. The pursuits are intended to undermine the integrity in the Commission whilst disrupting the efficient capabilities [of your NLC] and resulting in insurmountable reputational damage towards the Fee since the custodian of personal information entrusted to it by its beneficiaries.”
His ask for to the SSA to analyze was supported within an affidavit by suspended NLC firm secretary, Nomphumelelo Nene.
Nene is currently facing a disciplinary inquiry just after she was unsuccessful in lawful action to put aside results of irregular expenditure on her watch.
The goal of her affidavit, Nene reported, was “to report the events which transpired regarding information safety breaches in the National Lotteries Fee”.
She outlined different information reviews which she claimed were the results of such “breaches” (see at the conclusion of this informative article).
Nene said that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that amongst its workers, Sello Qhino, had “furnished her classified NLC Info and persistently inspired her to offer the knowledge to GroundUp”.
Qhino, who blew the whistle on a number of dodgy lottery-funded assignments in Kuruman soon after attempts to boost the issue internally ended up ignored, was subsequently fired.
Referring to an eighteen November 2018 write-up in the Day-to-day Dispatch regarding the misappropriation of Lottery cash, Nene reported that the NLC recognized and afterwards suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an employee within the NLC’s East London Place of work, who was the associate plus the mother of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s three kids.
Rungqu and Makatse feel Rungqu was punished simply 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 guilty and permitted to return to work.
“The widespread factor in these content is the fact that [they contain] classified data relating to proactive funding assignments,” Nene claimed in her affidavit.
When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out from the loved ones dwelling to go ahead and take warmth off her and his children. Facing homelessness, he moved into an Place of work in an vacant manufacturing unit belonging to a friend.
Each Makatse and Qhino are participating in an NLC reparation procedure meant to recognise the damage many people experienced for the fingers of your NLC. Apologies and, in some instances, monetary payment are expected.
“Some persons had been really impacted pretty negatively by this … This is basically agonizing,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz told the Everyday Maverick very last calendar year.
“I met several these individuals. It was just so heart-wrenching that their whole life have been turned the other way up,” said Scholtz.
Among the Those people she fulfilled have been Qhino and Makatse.
Protected platform desired for whistleblowers
The SSA uncovered the absence at enough time of a proper channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to turn to the media.
“Failure to possess a focused anti-corruption channel will end in staff presenting this kind of conditions outside of the NLC,” the SSA claimed in its conclusions.
“Provided the magnitude of corruption in condition establishments, it continues to be essential that it makes sure that the NLC complies with all protection prescripts Which its concentration is on making sure that unlawful and irregular carry out is adequately mitigated in opposition to and by making certain an satisfactory channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward carry out with no currently being intimidated.”
It advisable the NLC establish a “Secure channel” for workers to supply info on any “untoward action” that would not prevent or discourage staff members from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers coverage, according to the Secured Disclosures Act 25 of 2000, is often a necessity.”
Media experiences Nene detailed
A ten December 2017 report in the Limpopo Mirror about corruption and maladministration involving the Lottery-funded Vhembe Overall health and Fitness Centre in Limpopo. GroundUp has worked closely with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and owner on the Limpopo Mirror, to reveal NLC corruption. “The short article experienced things of data not out there in the general public area, thereby raising issue on interior Data safety breaches. The allegations while in the media had been independently investigated,” Nene stated. “Nevertheless, workforce responsible for divulging labeled info have nonetheless for being discovered”;
A 28 January 2018 post released by the Dally Dispatch “citing several allegations with the Limpopo Mirror article printed on 10 December 2017 and also a new allegation concerning a previous personnel because of the identify of Mzukisi Makatse. He was charged and summarily dismissed to the risk triggered for the organisation.”
A 16 November 2018 article during the Lowvelder concerning the misappropriation of NLC resources involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has described how, Regardless of receiving R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab has not been finished. “The Lowvelder posting contained categorized information with regard to NLC plan, elevating even further issues of inside info safety breaches,” Nene claimed in her affidavit. “The prima facie proof with regards to these allegations didn't warrant an independent Investigation, even so [it] highlighted the heightened facts protection threats throughout the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose a few dodgy R27.five-million grant to Denzhe Key Care, a hijacked NPO. Nene mentioned GroundUp had verified in its story that it was based on leaked NLC files. This was despite the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Advertising of Use of Data) request for facts with regards to the undertaking, she said