Former Nationwide Lotteries Fee (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda questioned the Condition Security Agency (SSA) in December 2018 to investigate the leaking of documents that uncovered lottery corruption.
The NLC’s enterprise secretary at enough time detailed media reviews she said were depending on “stolen” information and facts in an affidavit for that SSA.
The SSA did look into. It identified the information was not a matter of point out stability and which the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “enough motive” for the media to show it.
A fresh board and management has because taken more than the NLC and So far have taken steps to end corruption within the institution.
A Condition Protection Company (SSA) investigation discovered the “prevalence” of alleged corruption and irregularities involving the NLC and its beneficiaries “provided ample motive” for exposure through the media.
The probe into intended “data protection breaches and sabotage of NLC operations” was undertaken right after 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 currently suspended NLC company secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the ask for, and
the security company’s “confidential” findings and proposals.
Nevhutanda asked the SSA to analyze the position of NLC workers in the alleged leaking of data, and Nene, in her affidavit identified precise media and reviews that she claimed included these leaks.
Within the letter outlining its results, the SSA explained to the NLC that although preserving state details was “a authorized very important aimed at defending the sovereignty and integrity on the state” this only applied to properly categorized data.
Even though it did not say so specifically, the SSA findings implied the allegedly leaked data didn't drop into this class.
Noticeably, the SSA built it apparent that the necessity to safeguard condition information “does not prevent any unique from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or illegal activity”.
The SSA investigation identified which the NLC information involved in the alleged breach was “delicate and privileged in mother nature, although not categorized with regards to the prescripts on the Least Facts Stability Criteria (MISS)”.
“The leakage in the appropriate sensitive Formal NLC data on the media will not pose a danger to countrywide stability,” the SSA said, including the effect in the breaches was reputational.
The SSA report located “no evidence of the factual and incriminating character against any of the suspected NLC employees that can be recognized from the data and knowledge interrogated”.
What's more, it stated that “the prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities within the NLC and at its beneficiaries does provide enough motive to possess this sort of uncovered inside the media”.
Conspiracy promises
In 2020, Nevhutanda informed MPs all through a session of Parliament’s trade, sector and Level of competition portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” wherein information “stolen” from your NLC was sent for the US, where he claimed it was staying bought to fund a smear marketing campaign from the NLC.
He was repeating equivalent promises he had Earlier made in Parliament, which provided advert hominem assaults on GroundUp and this reporter but was watchful not to call possibly.
“I arrived here In this particular August dwelling last year and noted to honourable associates that information regarding our beneficiaries has long been stolen and set in a single condition in America,” he told MPs.
“We known as on the Point out Protection Agency to return investigate the issue since we've been receiving reviews that our information is creating cash for media platforms and journalists,” he claimed. “There's been converse, obviously from just one source, a single media, that spoke A great deal about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda stated (referring to GroundUp), but failed to explain to MPs the SSA investigation had been accomplished Just about a calendar year before.
Proactive funding was at the guts with the looting with the lottery. It aspect-stepped the normal grant method. The NLC could itself determine a venture to fund and appoint a non-profit organisation to supervise it.
Soon after Nevhutanda initial told Parliament in 2018 that he had questioned the SSA to research the meant breach, the South African National Editors Discussion board issued a statement declaring that his remarks mirrored “an especially perilous Frame of mind where the media is currently being blamed with the NLC’s inherent issues”.
“As an alternative to investigating why millions can not be accounted for, the NLC has as an alternative made an effort to Forged question within the integrity of your journalists involved and has asked the SSA to investigate their sources.”
Proactive assignments built magic formula
Security flaws identified inside the NLC grant funding technique in the course of the SSA’s investigation, show up to are applied as an excuse by the NLC to eliminate all proactive-funded initiatives from its central grants program.
“In or about 21 December 2019, the classification of all pro-actively funding initiatives was heightened to ‘mystery’ and initiatives ended up removed from the grant funding method and managed manually under the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Information and facts Business office, Executive Manager Legal so that you can safeguard [the] information and facts,” Nene reported in her affidavit.
“There was loads of inner dialogue, with a lot of forwards and backwards, about how to proceed to plug the alleged leaks”, a supply, who was inside a senior situation with the NLC at the time, advised GroundUp. “In the long run, the choice was taken to get rid of each of the proactive jobs from your process and Restrict use of A few persons”.
Some in that handful of men and women ended up implicated in corruption.
Maselwa, who resigned with the NLC quite a few yrs in the past, has become implicated in corruption involving lottery resources. He been given R4.three-million from lottery money allotted to develop a library and museum advanced in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural Audio and Arts Expo) which he employed to make a residence within an upmarket gated improvement in Pretoria. The residence is among various paid for with lottery money that were frozen following the Asset Forfeiture Unit acquired a preservation purchase in December 2022.
The politically-connected Nevhutanda, who was appointed because the NLC board chairperson by previous President Jacob Zuma in 2009 and was near to higher-ups inside the ANC leadership, former NLC previous Commissioner Thabang Mampane, and ex-chief functioning officer Phillemon Letwaba, have all been implicated while in the corruption which overwhelmed the NLC on their check out.
Also implicated are former board customers William Huma, who resigned after he was confronted with evidence of how he had profited from corrupt lottery grants, and Muthuhadini Madzivhandila, who's got given that died.
Every time a new administration, such as the entire board and executive, took in excess of for the NLC in late 2022 and early 2023, they discovered a “chaotic mess” within the documentation associated with proactive funding, Considerably of which was paper-dependent. Critical paperwork had been missing. Information held for safekeeping by doc storage firm Metrofile had been signed out and in no way returned.
The NLC was capable of Get better copies of some ตรวจ files from its Mimecast e mail archiving technique along with the laptops of their assistants and aid staff members.
News reports
In his one December 2018 letter, addressed to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has observed with grave concern doable details stability breaches along with the unauthorised use and/or dissemination of private details received on account of executing official features from the Fee by NLC workforce. The actions are meant to undermine the integrity in the Commission while disrupting the efficient functions [of the NLC] and causing insurmountable reputational hurt to your Commission because the custodian of personal information and facts entrusted to it by its beneficiaries.”
His request for the SSA to analyze was supported in an affidavit by suspended NLC company secretary, Nomphumelelo Nene.
Nene is now experiencing a disciplinary inquiry following she was unsuccessful in authorized motion to set aside results of irregular expenditure on her check out.
The objective of her affidavit, Nene reported, was “to document the gatherings which transpired relating to data protection breaches within the Countrywide Lotteries Fee”.
She listed numerous news reports which she claimed had been the outcome of these “breaches” (see at the end of this informative article).
Nene mentioned that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that among its staff, Sello Qhino, experienced “presented her classified NLC Information and facts and persistently encouraged her to provide the knowledge to GroundUp”.
Qhino, who blew the whistle with a series of dodgy lottery-funded projects in Kuruman just after attempts to boost The difficulty internally had been overlooked, was subsequently fired.
Referring to an eighteen November 2018 article while in the Daily Dispatch in regards to the misappropriation of Lottery resources, Nene said that the NLC identified after which suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an personnel from the NLC’s East London office, who was the partner and the mom of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s 3 youngsters.
Rungqu and Makatse feel Rungqu was punished since Makatse blew the whistle. She was suspended and billed internally, Along with the NLC paying R470,000 on legal professionals to depict it, but was found not responsible and permitted to return to work.
“The prevalent factor in these content is the fact that [they entail] categorised info associated with proactive funding initiatives,” Nene reported in her affidavit.
When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out from the loved ones property to go ahead and take heat off her and his young children. Going through homelessness, he moved into an Business office in an empty factory belonging to a friend.
Both of those Makatse and Qhino are taking part in an NLC reparation course of action intended to recognise the hurt a number of people suffered for the fingers from the NLC. Apologies and, occasionally, economic payment are anticipated.
“Some people today had been seriously afflicted really negatively by this … This is de facto distressing,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz informed the Day-to-day Maverick past year.
“I met a number of these men and women. It had been just so heart-wrenching that their entire life have been turned the other way up,” claimed Scholtz.
Amid Individuals she satisfied have been Qhino and Makatse.
Protected System essential for whistleblowers
The SSA discovered the absence at some time of a correct channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to show towards the media.
“Failure to possess a dedicated anti-corruption channel will cause employees presenting these kinds of cases outside of the NLC,” the SSA claimed in its conclusions.
“Provided the magnitude of corruption in condition establishments, it stays very important that it ensures that the NLC complies with all security prescripts Which its concentrate is on making certain that illegal and irregular conduct is sufficiently mitigated versus and by making sure an adequate channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward perform with out becoming intimidated.”
It recommended which the NLC create a “Harmless channel” for workers to provide info on any “untoward activity” that would not prevent or discourage staff members from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers policy, dependant on the Safeguarded Disclosures Act twenty five of 2000, is really a prerequisite.”
Media reports Nene listed
A 10 December 2017 report from the Limpopo Mirror about corruption and maladministration involving the Lottery-funded Vhembe Overall health and Exercise Centre in Limpopo. GroundUp has labored closely with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and owner with the Limpopo Mirror, to expose NLC corruption. “The posting had things of data not out there in the general public area, therefore increasing problem on inside Facts stability breaches. The allegations during the media were independently investigated,” Nene stated. “Nonetheless, personnel answerable for divulging categorized information have yet to get identified”;
A 28 January 2018 report published with the Dally Dispatch “citing many allegations within the Limpopo Mirror write-up released on ten December 2017 and a new allegation referring to a previous staff from the title of Mzukisi Makatse. He was charged and summarily dismissed to the risk brought about into the organisation.”
A sixteen November 2018 report from the Lowvelder concerning the misappropriation of NLC funds involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has claimed how, Despite obtaining R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab has never been completed. “The Lowvelder short article contained categorized details in terms of NLC coverage, boosting even further worries of inner information safety breaches,” Nene claimed in her affidavit. “The prima facie proof with regard to these allegations did not warrant an impartial Investigation, having said that [it] highlighted the heightened info security dangers inside the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose about a dodgy R27.five-million grant to Denzhe Key Treatment, a hijacked NPO. Nene reported GroundUp experienced verified in its story that it was based upon leaked NLC paperwork. This was despite the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Advertising of Use of Data) request for particulars with regards to the job, she explained