Lottery bosses turned to Condition Security Agency to investigate leaks
Lottery bosses turned to Condition Security Agency to investigate leaks
Blog Article
Previous Nationwide Lotteries Fee (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda requested the State Stability Agency (SSA) in December 2018 to analyze the leaking of paperwork that uncovered lottery corruption.
The NLC’s enterprise secretary at time mentioned media studies she said have been depending on “stolen” information and facts within an affidavit for your SSA.
The SSA did examine. It located the data wasn't a make any difference of point out stability and which the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “enough motive” for that media to reveal it.
A completely new board and administration has considering the fact that taken around the NLC and Up to now have taken steps to end corruption at the establishment.
A State Stability Agency (SSA) investigation found the “prevalence” of alleged corruption and irregularities involving the NLC and its beneficiaries “offered enough motive” for exposure via the media.
The probe into intended “information safety breaches and sabotage of NLC functions” was carried out soon after then-NLC board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda wrote to the SSA in December 2018 requesting it to investigate.
Here is
Nevhutanda’s letter,
an affidavit by at this time suspended NLC business secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the request, and
the security agency’s “confidential” findings and recommendations.
Nevhutanda asked the SSA to investigate the function of NLC workers inside the alleged leaking of knowledge, and Nene, in her affidavit identified particular media and reports that she claimed associated these leaks.
During the letter outlining its results, the SSA informed the NLC that whilst protecting condition details was “a lawful critical aimed at preserving the sovereignty and integrity in the point out” this only placed on appropriately labeled information.
Although it did not say so instantly, the SSA findings implied that the allegedly leaked details didn't slide into this group.
Significantly, the SSA created it obvious that the need to defend condition data “won't protect against any unique from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or criminality”.
The SSA investigation observed the NLC details involved in the alleged breach was “delicate and privileged in nature, although not categorized in terms of the prescripts of your Bare minimum Details Protection Criteria (Pass up)”.
“The leakage on the relevant delicate official NLC information and facts for the media will not pose a threat to countrywide safety,” the SSA stated, including that the effect of the breaches was reputational.
The SSA report located “no proof of a factual and incriminating character versus any from the suspected NLC workers that might be identified from the data and details interrogated”.
What's more, it stated that “the prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities inside the NLC and at its beneficiaries does provide ample motive to possess such uncovered while in the media”.
Conspiracy promises
In 2020, Nevhutanda informed MPs during a session of Parliament’s trade, industry and Competitiveness portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” in which info “stolen” within the NLC was despatched on the US, where by he claimed it was currently being offered to fund a smear marketing campaign versus the NLC.
He was repeating comparable statements he experienced previously produced in Parliament, which incorporated ad hominem attacks on GroundUp which reporter but was thorough not to name either.
“I arrived listed here On this August home last 12 months and documented to honourable members that specifics of our beneficiaries has become stolen and put in one point out in America,” he instructed MPs.
“We known as about the Point out Security Agency to come back take a look at the make a difference mainly because we've been getting reviews that our facts is building money for media platforms and journalists,” he stated. “There has been speak, needless to say from a single source, one media, that spoke much about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda said (referring to GroundUp), but did not inform MPs which the SSA investigation had been completed Pretty much a 12 months earlier.
Proactive funding was at the center of the looting with the lottery. It side-stepped the conventional grant process. The NLC could by itself detect a undertaking to fund and appoint a non-financial gain organisation to supervise it.
Right after Nevhutanda initially explained to Parliament in 2018 that he had asked the SSA to investigate the supposed breach, the South African National Editors Forum issued a statement saying that his remarks mirrored “an incredibly dangerous attitude where the media is being blamed with the NLC’s inherent challenges”.
“In lieu of investigating why thousands and thousands can not be accounted for, the NLC has as an alternative attempted to Forged doubt over the integrity on the journalists involved and has questioned the SSA to investigate their sources.”
Proactive jobs created top secret
Safety flaws determined in the NLC grant funding program in the SSA’s investigation, appear to have already been utilised being an excuse with the NLC to get rid of all proactive-funded initiatives from its central grants process.
“In or about 21 December 2019, the classification of all Professional-actively funding assignments was heightened to ‘mystery’ and assignments had been removed from the grant funding procedure and preserved manually under the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Information Business, Government Supervisor Legal in order to safeguard [the] facts,” Nene mentioned in her affidavit.
“There was a lot of inner dialogue, with lots of backwards and forwards, about how to proceed to plug the alleged leaks”, a resource, who was inside a senior placement within the NLC at the time, informed GroundUp. “Ultimately, the decision was taken to get rid of the many proactive initiatives within the procedure and Restrict use of a handful of folks”.
Some in that handful of individuals were implicated in corruption.
Maselwa, who resigned from the NLC a number of decades in the past, has been implicated in corruption involving lottery resources. He received R4.three-million from lottery money allocated to build a library and museum complex in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural Songs and Arts Expo) which he utilized to build a residence in an upmarket gated enhancement in Pretoria. The property is among quite a few paid for with lottery money which were frozen following the Asset Forfeiture Device obtained a preservation buy 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 from the ANC leadership, previous NLC previous Commissioner Thabang Mampane, and ex-Main running officer Phillemon Letwaba, have all been implicated in the corruption which overcome the NLC on their own check out.
Also implicated are former board users William Huma, who resigned immediately after he was confronted with proof of how he had profited from corrupt lottery grants, and Muthuhadini Madzivhandila, who's got considering that died.
Every time a new administration, such as the complete board and executive, took around within the NLC in late 2022 and early 2023, they discovered a “chaotic mess” within the documentation referring to proactive funding, Significantly of which was paper-dependent. Essential paperwork were being lacking. Files held for safekeeping by doc storage firm Metrofile had been signed out and by no means returned.
The NLC was capable to Get better copies of some lottovip documents from its Mimecast electronic mail archiving technique as well as the laptops in their assistants and assist workers.
Information stories
In his one December 2018 letter, addressed to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has mentioned with grave problem doable information and facts security breaches and also the unauthorised use and/or dissemination of confidential info obtained as a result of carrying out Formal features from the Commission by NLC staff members. The activities are meant to undermine the integrity with the Commission although disrupting the powerful functions [with the NLC] and creating insurmountable reputational damage to the Commission since the custodian of private info entrusted to it by its beneficiaries.”
His request to the SSA to research was supported within an affidavit by suspended NLC enterprise secretary, Nomphumelelo Nene.
Nene is currently dealing with a disciplinary inquiry soon after she was unsuccessful in authorized action to put aside conclusions of irregular expenditure on her look at.
The objective of her affidavit, Nene mentioned, was “to document the events which transpired concerning facts safety breaches at the Nationwide Lotteries Fee”.
She shown numerous information experiences which she claimed have been the results of those “breaches” (see at the conclusion of this text).
Nene said that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that one among its workforce, Sello Qhino, had “offered her labeled NLC Information and facts and persistently inspired her to offer the knowledge to GroundUp”.
Qhino, who blew the whistle over a series of dodgy lottery-funded tasks in Kuruman soon after makes an attempt to raise The difficulty internally were being overlooked, was subsequently fired.
Referring to an 18 November 2018 post in the Day by day Dispatch about the misappropriation of Lottery cash, Nene stated which the NLC identified after which you can suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an worker in the NLC’s East London Office environment, who was the companion plus the mom of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s three young children.
Rungqu and Makatse consider Rungqu was punished since Makatse blew the whistle. She was suspended and charged internally, Together with the NLC expending R470,000 on legal professionals to represent it, but was found not responsible and permitted to return to work.
“The frequent factor in these content articles is [they involve] categorised facts associated with proactive funding tasks,” Nene reported in her affidavit.
When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out on the loved ones dwelling to take the warmth off her and his children. Experiencing homelessness, he moved into an Workplace in an vacant manufacturing unit belonging to a friend.
The two Makatse and Qhino are participating in an NLC reparation course of action meant to recognise the hurt some people suffered in the hands in the NLC. Apologies and, in some instances, economic compensation are envisioned.
“Some individuals were definitely influenced extremely negatively by this … This is really agonizing,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz informed the Day by day Maverick previous calendar year.
“I satisfied two or three these men and women. It absolutely was just so coronary heart-wrenching that their entire lives are actually turned upside down,” mentioned Scholtz.
Between Those people she met had been Qhino and Makatse.
Risk-free System essential for whistleblowers
The SSA observed the absence at enough time of a suitable channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to turn on the media.
“Failure to have a dedicated anti-corruption channel will bring about workforce presenting these types of scenarios outside of the NLC,” the SSA said in its conclusions.
“Provided the magnitude of corruption in point out institutions, it continues to be critical that it ensures that the NLC complies with all safety prescripts Which its concentrate is on making sure that unlawful and irregular conduct is adequately mitigated versus and by ensuring an ample channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward perform without getting intimidated.”
It encouraged which the NLC build a “safe channel” for employees to deliver info on any “untoward exercise” that may not reduce or discourage employees from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers plan, dependant on the Secured Disclosures Act 25 of 2000, is really a requirement.”
Media stories Nene shown
A 10 December 2017 report from the Limpopo Mirror about corruption and maladministration involving the Lottery-funded Vhembe Overall health and Health and fitness Centre in Limpopo. GroundUp has labored intently with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and owner with the Limpopo Mirror, to expose NLC corruption. “The short article experienced factors of knowledge not available in the public domain, therefore increasing issue on interior Info safety breaches. The allegations while in the media ended up independently investigated,” Nene claimed. “However, employees accountable for divulging classified information have yet to be discovered”;
A 28 January 2018 report revealed from the Dally Dispatch “citing various allegations with the Limpopo Mirror write-up posted on 10 December 2017 in addition to a new allegation associated with a previous employee with the identify of Mzukisi Makatse. He was charged and summarily dismissed to the menace caused for the organisation.”
A 16 November 2018 short article during the Lowvelder regarding the misappropriation of NLC money involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has documented how, Regardless of getting R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab has never been finished. “The Lowvelder post contained classified information in terms of NLC plan, increasing more issues of interior data safety breaches,” Nene claimed in her affidavit. “The prima facie evidence regarding these allegations did not warrant an unbiased Investigation, on the other hand [it] highlighted the heightened facts security pitfalls in the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose a few dodgy R27.5-million grant to Denzhe Most important Care, a hijacked NPO. Nene explained GroundUp had verified in its Tale that it had been based on leaked NLC paperwork. This was Regardless of the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Advertising of Access to Information) request for aspects with regard to the undertaking, she claimed
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