Lottery bosses turned to State Stability Company to analyze leaks

Lottery bosses turned to State Stability Company to analyze leaks

Blog Article

Former Nationwide Lotteries Fee (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda asked the Condition Protection Company (SSA) in December 2018 to analyze the leaking of files that uncovered lottery corruption.
The NLC’s company secretary at the time outlined media studies she claimed ended up based on “stolen” information in an affidavit for the SSA.
The SSA did investigate. It observed the information was not a matter of point out security and which the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “sufficient motive” for the media to show it.
A brand new board and management has considering the fact that taken around the NLC and To date have taken measures to finish corruption with the institution.
A State Protection Company (SSA) investigation discovered the “prevalence” of alleged corruption and irregularities involving the NLC and its beneficiaries “delivered enough motive” for publicity by the media.

The probe into supposed “info security breaches and sabotage of NLC operations” was carried out immediately after then-NLC board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda wrote into the SSA in December 2018 requesting it to analyze.

Here is

Nevhutanda’s letter,
an affidavit by presently suspended NLC business secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the ask for, and
the security company’s “confidential” conclusions and recommendations.
Nevhutanda questioned the SSA to research the job of NLC staff members inside the alleged leaking of data, and Nene, in her affidavit recognized unique media and reviews that she claimed included these leaks.

Within the letter outlining its results, the SSA instructed the NLC that while safeguarding condition information and facts was “a lawful crucial aimed at shielding the sovereignty and integrity from the point out” this only placed on appropriately categorized details.

Although it didn't say so instantly, the SSA results implied that the allegedly leaked info didn't drop into this category.

Noticeably, the SSA designed it obvious that the necessity to guard state information and facts “isn't going to stop any unique 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, but not labeled concerning the prescripts of the Minimal Data Protection Expectations (Miss out on)”.

“The leakage with the suitable delicate official NLC information to the media would not pose a menace to national stability,” the SSA explained, including which the affect from the breaches was reputational.

The SSA report uncovered “no evidence of the factual and incriminating nature in opposition to any of the suspected NLC staff members that might 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 deliver enough motive to have this sort of exposed inside the media”.

Conspiracy statements
In 2020, Nevhutanda advised MPs for the duration of a session of Parliament’s trade, marketplace and Level of competition portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” wherein facts “stolen” with the NLC was sent to the US, where by he claimed it had been becoming marketed to fund a smear campaign from the NLC.

He was repeating comparable promises he had Formerly built in Parliament, which incorporated advertisement hominem assaults on GroundUp which reporter but was mindful not to name both.

“I arrived in this article On this August household past calendar year and reported to honourable members that details about our beneficiaries has become stolen and place in one point out in the usa,” he explained to MPs.

“We termed to the Condition Security Company to come back explore the matter because we have been acquiring reviews that our info is creating funds for media platforms and journalists,” he reported. “There's been chat, certainly from a single resource, just one media, that spoke Substantially about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda mentioned (referring to GroundUp), but did not explain to MPs the SSA investigation had been concluded Virtually a 12 months before.

Proactive funding was at the heart from the looting in the lottery. It aspect-stepped the conventional grant process. The NLC could by itself discover a task to fund and appoint a non-income organisation to oversee it.

Following Nevhutanda first explained to Parliament in 2018 that he had questioned the SSA to research the meant breach, the South African Nationwide Editors Discussion board issued a statement expressing that his remarks reflected “a very harmful Mind-set exactly where the media is staying blamed for the NLC’s inherent troubles”.

“As opposed to investigating why thousands and thousands can't be accounted for, the NLC has in its place made an effort to Forged question over the integrity of the journalists associated and it has requested the SSA to investigate their sources.”

Proactive jobs built top secret
Protection flaws recognized within the NLC grant funding system in the SSA’s investigation, show up to are already utilized being an justification with the NLC to eliminate all proactive-funded assignments from its central grants system.

“In or about 21 December 2019, the classification of all pro-actively funding initiatives was heightened to ‘magic formula’ and assignments were being faraway from the grant funding method and taken care of manually beneath the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Facts Workplace, Executive Manager Lawful in order to safeguard [the] info,” Nene stated in her affidavit.

“There was lots of internal discussion, with a great deal of backwards and forwards, about how to proceed to plug the alleged leaks”, a supply, who was in a very senior posture at the NLC at the time, told GroundUp. “In the end, the choice was taken to get rid of every one of the proactive assignments from your program and Restrict use of a handful of people”.

Some in that handful of folks have been implicated in corruption.

Maselwa, who resigned in the NLC several yrs ago, has actually been implicated in corruption involving lottery funds. He gained R4.three-million from lottery money allocated to make a library and museum sophisticated in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural Tunes and Arts Expo) which he utilized to create a dwelling in an upmarket gated advancement in Pretoria. The house is one of various paid out for with lottery cash which were frozen following the Asset Forfeiture Unit obtained a preservation order 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 large-ups inside 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 proof of how he experienced profited from corrupt lottery grants, and Muthuhadini Madzivhandila, that has since died.

Each time a new administration, such as the complete board and government, took over on the NLC in late 2022 and early 2023, they found out a “chaotic mess” within the documentation regarding proactive funding, A great deal of which was paper-primarily based. Crucial paperwork have been missing. Files held for safekeeping by document storage company Metrofile were signed out and never returned.

The NLC was able to Get better copies of some ผล หวย ลาว วัน นี้ documents from its Mimecast e-mail archiving process and the laptops of their assistants and assistance workers.

News studies
In his 1 December 2018 letter, tackled to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has mentioned with grave concern feasible details security breaches and the unauthorised use and/or dissemination of private facts acquired as a result of accomplishing official functions from the Commission by NLC workforce. The pursuits are meant to undermine the integrity on the Fee although disrupting the helpful functions [with the NLC] and creating insurmountable reputational damage to your Fee as 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 company secretary, Nomphumelelo Nene.

Nene is presently going through a disciplinary inquiry soon after she was unsuccessful in authorized action to put aside results of irregular expenditure on her look at.

The objective of her affidavit, Nene stated, was “to record the events which transpired concerning facts safety breaches at the Nationwide Lotteries Commission”.

She shown numerous information reviews which she claimed ended up the outcome of such “breaches” (see at the end of this text).

Nene stated that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that considered one of its employees, 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 tasks in Kuruman right after attempts to boost The problem internally ended up overlooked, was subsequently fired.

Referring to an eighteen November 2018 write-up from the Day by day Dispatch with regard to the misappropriation of Lottery cash, Nene claimed which the NLC recognized after which suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an employee inside the NLC’s East London Workplace, who was the companion and the mother of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s 3 kids.

Rungqu and Makatse think Rungqu was punished since Makatse blew the whistle. She was suspended and charged internally, With all the NLC paying R470,000 on attorneys to characterize it, but was observed not guilty and permitted to return to work.

“The widespread factor in these articles or blog posts is always that [they include] classified info relating to proactive funding projects,” Nene claimed in her affidavit.

When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out with the relatives property to go ahead and take warmth off her and his youngsters. Struggling with homelessness, he moved into an Business office within an empty manufacturing unit belonging to a buddy.

Each Makatse and Qhino are taking part in an NLC reparation procedure meant to recognise the harm lots of people suffered with the arms on the NLC. Apologies and, occasionally, financial compensation are anticipated.

“Some men and women were being really affected extremely negatively by this … This is absolutely agonizing,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz advised the Each day Maverick very last yr.

“I satisfied a few these individuals. It absolutely was just so heart-wrenching that their whole life have already been turned upside down,” claimed Scholtz.

Amid those she fulfilled were being Qhino and Makatse.

Risk-free System necessary for whistleblowers
The SSA found the absence at time of a suitable channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to show for the media.

“Failure to have a committed anti-corruption channel will end in employees presenting this sort of scenarios beyond the NLC,” the SSA reported in its conclusions.

“Given the magnitude of corruption in state establishments, it continues to be important that it makes sure that the NLC complies with all protection prescripts and that its concentrate is on ensuring that unlawful and irregular carry out is sufficiently mitigated versus and by guaranteeing an satisfactory channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward conduct without the need of staying intimidated.”

It advisable which the NLC create a “Secure channel” for workers to provide info on any “untoward activity” that could not avoid or discourage workforce from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers policy, determined by the Protected Disclosures Act 25 of 2000, is actually a prerequisite.”

Media experiences Nene outlined
A 10 December 2017 report inside the Limpopo Mirror about corruption and maladministration involving the Lottery-funded Vhembe Overall health and Exercise Centre in Limpopo. GroundUp has labored carefully with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and proprietor in the Limpopo Mirror, to expose NLC corruption. “The article experienced components of data not available in the general public domain, thus increasing concern on interior Data security breaches. The allegations from the media had been independently investigated,” Nene reported. “Even so, employees to blame for divulging classified details have yet to get determined”;
A 28 January 2018 article printed with the Dally Dispatch “citing a lot of allegations from the Limpopo Mirror article published on ten December 2017 and a new allegation relating to a previous personnel with the name of Mzukisi Makatse. He was billed and summarily dismissed with the risk triggered towards the organisation.”
A sixteen November 2018 short article while in the Lowvelder in regards to the misappropriation of NLC funds involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has claimed how, in spite of obtaining R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab hasn't been finished. “The Lowvelder article contained categorized information and facts regarding NLC plan, boosting additional problems of inside information and facts security breaches,” Nene stated in her affidavit. “The prima facie evidence with regards to these allegations didn't warrant an impartial Investigation, even so [it] highlighted the heightened information and facts protection challenges inside the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose about a dodgy R27.five-million grant to Denzhe Key Care, a hijacked NPO. Nene stated GroundUp experienced confirmed in its Tale that it had been depending on leaked NLC files. This was despite the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Advertising of Entry to Information) request for aspects with regards to the venture, she reported