Former Nationwide Lotteries Fee (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda questioned the State Safety Agency (SSA) in December 2018 to investigate the leaking of documents that uncovered lottery corruption.
The NLC’s organization secretary at time detailed media stories she claimed ended up based on “stolen” information and facts within an affidavit to the SSA.
The SSA did investigate. It uncovered the knowledge was not a make any difference of state security and that the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “ample motive” with the media to reveal it.
A whole new board and management has given that taken above the NLC and Up to now have taken actions to end corruption for the establishment.
A Condition Stability Company (SSA) investigation identified the “prevalence” of alleged corruption and irregularities involving the NLC and its beneficiaries “provided ample motive” for exposure with the media.
The probe into intended “data protection breaches and sabotage of NLC operations” was undertaken after then-NLC board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda wrote towards the SSA in December 2018 requesting it to analyze.
Here's
Nevhutanda’s letter,
an affidavit by at the moment suspended NLC firm secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the request, and
the safety agency’s “private” findings and proposals.
Nevhutanda asked the SSA to analyze the part of NLC staff while in the alleged leaking of information, and Nene, in her affidavit recognized unique media and studies that she claimed included these leaks.
Within the letter outlining its results, the SSA instructed the NLC that while defending condition facts was “a lawful imperative geared toward defending the sovereignty and integrity on the condition” this only applied to correctly labeled facts.
Although it did not say so directly, the SSA conclusions implied the allegedly leaked info didn't drop into this category.
Noticeably, the SSA designed it very clear that the necessity to defend state facts “will not reduce any specific from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or criminality”.
The SSA investigation identified the NLC information associated with the alleged breach was “sensitive and privileged in character, although not labeled in terms of the prescripts from the Bare minimum Data Protection Criteria (Pass up)”.
“The leakage of your applicable delicate official NLC info to the media does not pose a menace to nationwide security,” the SSA claimed, including which the impression in the breaches was reputational.
The SSA report found “no evidence of the factual and incriminating nature from any of the suspected NLC staff members that may be determined from the data and information interrogated”.
What's more, it mentioned that “the prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities within the NLC and at its beneficiaries does offer ample motive to get these uncovered from the media”.
Conspiracy statements
In 2020, Nevhutanda advised MPs through a session of Parliament’s trade, marketplace and Level of competition portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” wherein information and facts “stolen” with the NLC was sent into the US, where by he claimed it had been being marketed to fund a smear marketing campaign in opposition to the NLC.
He was repeating comparable statements he experienced previously manufactured in Parliament, which included advertisement hominem assaults on GroundUp which reporter but was careful not to name both.
“I arrived right here During this August residence past year and described to honourable users that information about our beneficiaries has actually been stolen and set in a single point out in the usa,” he told MPs.
“We referred to as about the Condition Protection Agency to come explore the issue mainly because we have been receiving studies that our details is producing money for media platforms and journalists,” he reported. “There was discuss, obviously from one supply, one media, that spoke A great deal about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda mentioned (referring to GroundUp), but did not notify MPs which the SSA investigation were accomplished Pretty much a calendar year earlier.
Proactive funding was at the center from the looting on the lottery. It facet-stepped the traditional grant procedure. The NLC could itself identify a project to fund and appoint a non-earnings organisation to supervise it.
Following Nevhutanda first instructed 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 getting blamed for that NLC’s inherent problems”.
“As an alternative to investigating why tens of millions can not be accounted for, the NLC has rather tried to cast doubt on the integrity from the journalists involved and it has questioned the SSA to research their sources.”
Proactive projects made secret
Stability flaws determined inside the NLC grant funding method during the SSA’s investigation, show up to are already utilized being an justification through the NLC to eliminate all proactive-funded assignments from its central grants procedure.
“In or about 21 December 2019, the classification of all pro-actively funding assignments was heightened to ‘secret’ and tasks ended up faraway from the grant funding system and maintained manually under the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Data Business, Govt Supervisor Authorized so as to safeguard [the] facts,” Nene reported in her affidavit.
“There was loads of inside discussion, with plenty of back and forth, about how to proceed to plug the alleged leaks”, a supply, who was in the senior situation within the NLC at some time, instructed GroundUp. “In the long run, the decision was taken to remove all of the proactive projects from the procedure and limit access to A few folks”.
Some in that handful of individuals were being implicated in corruption.
Maselwa, who resigned with the NLC numerous years in the past, continues to be implicated in corruption involving lottery cash. He received R4.3-million from lottery cash allotted to construct a library and museum advanced in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural Music and Arts Expo) which he employed to develop a house in an upmarket gated advancement in Pretoria. The residence is among various compensated for with lottery resources which were frozen following the Asset Forfeiture Unit acquired a preservation purchase in December 2022.
The politically-connected Nevhutanda, who was appointed as the NLC board chairperson by previous President Jacob Zuma in 2009 and was near to substantial-ups while in the ANC leadership, previous 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 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 whole board and government, took around on the NLC in late 2022 and early 2023, they learned a “chaotic mess” within the documentation associated with proactive funding, Substantially of which was paper-centered. Key documents were lacking. Data files held for safekeeping by doc storage corporation Metrofile were signed out and under no circumstances returned.
The NLC was in the position to Get well copies of some หวย ออก documents from its Mimecast e-mail archiving process and the laptops of their assistants and assistance workers.
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In his 1 December 2018 letter, addressed to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has noted with grave issue probable information and facts protection breaches along with the unauthorised use and/or dissemination of confidential information attained because of carrying out Formal functions during the Commission by NLC workforce. The pursuits are meant to undermine the integrity in the Fee whilst disrupting the helpful functions [on the NLC] and producing insurmountable reputational harm on the Fee given that the custodian of private details entrusted to it by its beneficiaries.”
His request to the SSA to research was supported in an affidavit by suspended NLC firm secretary, Nomphumelelo Nene.
Nene is at this time struggling with a disciplinary inquiry after she was unsuccessful in lawful motion to set aside conclusions of irregular expenditure on her check out.
The goal of her affidavit, Nene explained, was “to file the occasions which transpired relating to information and facts safety breaches in the Nationwide Lotteries Commission”.
She shown numerous information reports which she claimed ended up the results of those “breaches” (see at the conclusion of this short article).
Nene explained that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that one of its staff, Sello Qhino, experienced “furnished her categorised NLC Information and persistently encouraged her to provide the information to GroundUp”.
Qhino, who blew the whistle on a number of dodgy lottery-funded jobs in Kuruman after tries to lift The problem internally have been dismissed, was subsequently fired.
Referring to an eighteen November 2018 posting from the Day-to-day Dispatch in regards to the misappropriation of Lottery money, Nene claimed that the NLC discovered and then suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an personnel from the NLC’s East London Place of work, who was the husband or wife plus the mother of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s 3 youngsters.
Rungqu and Makatse feel Rungqu was punished simply because Makatse blew the whistle. She was suspended and charged internally, Along with the NLC investing R470,000 on lawyers to stand for it, but was discovered not responsible and allowed to return to operate.
“The frequent factor in these articles or blog posts is [they require] labeled information and facts relating to proactive funding initiatives,” Nene said in her affidavit.
When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out in the relatives dwelling to take the heat off her and his kids. Going through homelessness, he moved into an Place of work in an vacant manufacturing facility belonging to a buddy.
Both equally Makatse and Qhino are participating in an NLC reparation method intended to recognise the hurt a lot of people suffered for the fingers of your NLC. Apologies and, in some instances, economical compensation are anticipated.
“Some people today had been seriously afflicted extremely negatively by this … This is de facto distressing,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz told the Every day Maverick previous yr.
“I satisfied several these men and women. It had been just so heart-wrenching that their whole life are actually turned the other way up,” explained Scholtz.
Amongst These she achieved ended up Qhino and Makatse.
Protected System wanted for whistleblowers
The SSA identified the absence at some time of a correct channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to show for the media.
“Failure to possess a dedicated anti-corruption channel will cause employees presenting these kinds of cases outside of the NLC,” the SSA explained in its results.
“Specified the magnitude of corruption in state institutions, it remains essential that it makes sure that the NLC complies with all safety prescripts and that its concentrate is on making certain that illegal and irregular perform is sufficiently mitigated from and by guaranteeing an ample channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward conduct with out being intimidated.”
It proposed the NLC establish a “Harmless channel” for employees to provide info on any “untoward exercise” that could not stop or discourage workforce from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers policy, based upon the Guarded Disclosures Act twenty five of 2000, is usually a necessity.”
Media stories Nene listed
A 10 December 2017 report inside the Limpopo Mirror about corruption and maladministration involving the Lottery-funded Vhembe Overall health and Health Centre in Limpopo. GroundUp has worked intently with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and proprietor from the Limpopo Mirror, to show NLC corruption. “The short article had features of knowledge not accessible in the general public domain, therefore boosting problem on interior Details stability breaches. The allegations inside the media were being independently investigated,” Nene stated. “Having said that, workers to blame for divulging categorised info have nevertheless being discovered”;
A 28 January 2018 posting published by the Dally Dispatch “citing many allegations in the Limpopo Mirror post published on ten December 2017 and also a new allegation regarding a former staff because of the title of Mzukisi Makatse. He was billed and summarily dismissed to the threat brought about for the organisation.”
A sixteen November 2018 report in the Lowvelder with regard to the misappropriation of NLC money involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has claimed how, in spite of getting R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab has not been done. “The Lowvelder post contained labeled facts in terms of NLC policy, raising more worries of inside data protection breaches,” Nene explained in her affidavit. “The prima facie evidence with regard to these allegations didn't warrant an impartial Investigation, on the other hand [it] highlighted the heightened data safety dangers throughout the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose a couple of dodgy R27.5-million grant to Denzhe Most important Care, a hijacked NPO. Nene said GroundUp experienced verified in its story that it absolutely was depending on leaked NLC files. This was despite the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Marketing of Access to Data) ask for for particulars with regard to the venture, she explained