Former Countrywide Lotteries Fee (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda asked the State Safety Agency (SSA) in December 2018 to research the leaking of paperwork that uncovered lottery corruption.
The NLC’s company secretary at the time outlined media reviews she mentioned had been based upon “stolen” facts in an affidavit for the SSA.
The SSA did look into. It located the information wasn't a issue of state protection and that the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “sufficient motive” for the media to reveal it.
A brand new board and administration has given that taken around the NLC and So far have taken actions to finish corruption at 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 publicity by the media.
The probe into supposed “info security breaches and sabotage of NLC functions” was carried out immediately after then-NLC board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda wrote to your SSA in December 2018 requesting it to research.
Here is
Nevhutanda’s letter,
an affidavit by currently suspended NLC enterprise secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the request, and
the safety agency’s “private” results and recommendations.
Nevhutanda requested the SSA to analyze the position of NLC employees during the alleged leaking of information, and Nene, in her affidavit discovered particular media and stories that she claimed involved these leaks.
Inside the letter outlining its results, the SSA explained to the NLC that whilst safeguarding point out information was “a legal crucial aimed toward safeguarding the sovereignty and integrity with the condition” this only applied to appropriately classified information.
Even though it didn't say so straight, the SSA conclusions implied which the allegedly leaked data didn't drop into this class.
Noticeably, the SSA manufactured it crystal clear that the need to defend condition data “isn't going to reduce any unique from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or criminal activity”.
The SSA investigation found which the NLC data involved in the alleged breach was “delicate and privileged in character, but not categorized when it comes to the prescripts in the Bare minimum Facts Protection Specifications (Miss out on)”.
“The leakage from the suitable delicate Formal NLC details into the media doesn't pose a menace to countrywide security,” the SSA reported, adding that the influence in the breaches was reputational.
The SSA report discovered “no evidence of a factual and incriminating mother nature in opposition to any from the suspected NLC staff members that can be discovered from the information and facts interrogated”.
Furthermore, it mentioned that “the prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities throughout the NLC and at its beneficiaries does supply sufficient motive to acquire such exposed within the media”.
Conspiracy claims
In 2020, Nevhutanda informed MPs for the duration of a session of Parliament’s trade, sector and Level of competition portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” in which information and facts “stolen” within the NLC was sent towards the US, where he claimed it had been getting bought to fund a smear campaign versus the NLC.
He was repeating related claims he had Beforehand created in Parliament, which bundled ad hominem attacks on GroundUp which reporter but was very careful not to name either.
“I came below in this August residence very last calendar year and claimed to honourable users that information about our beneficiaries is stolen and put in one point out in the usa,” he explained to MPs.
“We termed to the Condition Safety Company to come back explore the make a difference simply because we've been receiving reviews that our information and facts is creating cash for media platforms and journalists,” he claimed. “There's been communicate, needless to say from a person source, one particular media, that spoke much about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda mentioned (referring to GroundUp), but did not notify MPs which the SSA investigation were completed Virtually a yr earlier.
Proactive funding was at the heart in the looting in the lottery. It side-stepped the normal grant process. The NLC could alone establish a job to fund and appoint a non-financial gain organisation to oversee it.
Following Nevhutanda first instructed Parliament in 2018 that he had questioned the SSA to investigate the meant breach, the South African National Editors Discussion board issued a statement declaring that his remarks mirrored “a very harmful Mind-set exactly where the media is currently being blamed with the NLC’s inherent difficulties”.
“Rather then investigating why millions cannot be accounted for, the NLC has as an alternative attempted to Solid doubt around the integrity in the journalists concerned and has questioned the SSA to analyze their sources.”
Proactive assignments created magic formula
Security flaws discovered while in the NLC grant funding program through the SSA’s investigation, appear to are actually utilised being an excuse via 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 jobs were removed from the grant funding technique and managed manually underneath the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Info Business office, Government Manager Authorized to be able to safeguard [the] data,” Nene reported in her affidavit.
“There was a great deal of internal dialogue, with lots of forwards and backwards, about how to proceed to plug the alleged leaks”, a source, who was in a senior situation with the NLC at enough time, instructed GroundUp. “In the long run, the decision was taken to remove each of the proactive tasks in the system and Restrict entry to A few men and women”.
Some in that handful of people ended up implicated in corruption.
Maselwa, who resigned from your NLC quite a few decades ago, has actually been implicated in corruption involving lottery funds. He gained R4.3-million from lottery cash allotted to construct a library and museum intricate in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural New music and Arts Expo) which he used to build a home in an upmarket gated development in Pretoria. The assets is among many compensated for with lottery cash that were frozen following the Asset Forfeiture Unit received a preservation order in December 2022.
The politically-related Nevhutanda, who was appointed since the NLC board chairperson by previous President Jacob Zuma in 2009 and was close to significant-ups inside the ANC Management, previous NLC former Commissioner Thabang Mampane, and ex-chief functioning officer Phillemon Letwaba, have all been implicated within the corruption which overcome the NLC on their own check out.
Also implicated are former board associates William Huma, who resigned immediately after he was confronted with proof of how he experienced profited from corrupt lottery grants, and Muthuhadini Madzivhandila, who may have because died.
Each time a new administration, including the total board and government, took above on the NLC in late 2022 and early 2023, they uncovered a “chaotic mess” inside the documentation referring to proactive funding, Significantly of which was paper-based. Vital paperwork were lacking. Files held for safekeeping by doc storage business Metrofile were signed out and in no way returned.
The NLC was in a position to Get well copies of some ตรวจ หวย ลาว วัน นี้ documents from its Mimecast email archiving system and the laptops in their assistants and assist workers.
Information studies
In his 1 December 2018 letter, resolved to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has mentioned with grave issue achievable information protection breaches and the unauthorised use and/or dissemination of confidential information and facts obtained because of accomplishing official functions while in the Fee by NLC staff members. The activities are intended to undermine the integrity from the Commission whilst disrupting the successful functions [in the NLC] and leading to insurmountable reputational harm towards the Commission given that the custodian of private data entrusted to it by its beneficiaries.”
His request for the SSA to research was supported in an affidavit by suspended NLC enterprise secretary, Nomphumelelo Nene.
Nene is at this time dealing with a disciplinary inquiry after she was unsuccessful in authorized motion to set aside results of irregular expenditure on her look at.
The objective of her affidavit, Nene explained, was “to file the activities which transpired referring to info stability breaches for the Nationwide Lotteries Fee”.
She shown different information studies which she claimed were the effects of these “breaches” (see at the conclusion of this post).
Nene said that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that considered one of its workers, Sello Qhino, had “furnished her classified NLC Details and persistently encouraged her to supply the knowledge to GroundUp”.
Qhino, who blew the whistle over a number of dodgy lottery-funded initiatives in Kuruman just after tries to lift The difficulty internally were being disregarded, was subsequently fired.
Referring to an eighteen November 2018 report from the Day-to-day Dispatch with regards to the misappropriation of Lottery cash, Nene mentioned that the NLC determined then suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an employee during the NLC’s East London Office environment, who was the spouse as well as mother of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s 3 children.
Rungqu and Makatse imagine 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 depict it, but was observed not responsible and permitted to return to operate.
“The prevalent Think about these article content is that [they involve] categorised information and facts concerning proactive funding jobs,” Nene explained in her affidavit.
When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out in the loved ones house to go ahead and take heat off her and his small children. Experiencing homelessness, he moved into an Place of work within an empty manufacturing facility belonging to a friend.
Both equally Makatse and Qhino are taking part in an NLC reparation approach meant to recognise the hurt many people experienced within the hands from the NLC. Apologies and, in some instances, money payment are predicted.
“Some persons were being definitely afflicted incredibly negatively by this … This is de facto agonizing,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz advised the Everyday Maverick final calendar year.
“I fulfilled several these people. It absolutely was just so heart-wrenching that their whole lives have been turned the wrong way up,” stated Scholtz.
Between These she fulfilled were Qhino and Makatse.
Risk-free System required for whistleblowers
The SSA located the absence at some time of a proper channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to turn for the media.
“Failure to have a devoted anti-corruption channel will end in workforce presenting such instances outside of the NLC,” the SSA said in its findings.
“Given the magnitude of corruption in point out establishments, it stays vital that it ensures that the NLC complies with all stability prescripts Which its target is on ensuring that unlawful and irregular conduct is sufficiently mitigated towards and by making sure an enough channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward conduct devoid of getting intimidated.”
It proposed that the NLC create a “safe channel” for employees to offer info on any “untoward activity” that will not protect against or discourage employees from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers policy, determined by the Secured Disclosures Act twenty five of 2000, is usually a need.”
Media reports Nene listed
A ten December 2017 report in the Limpopo Mirror about corruption and maladministration involving the Lottery-funded Vhembe Health and Fitness Centre in Limpopo. GroundUp has labored carefully with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and owner of your Limpopo Mirror, to reveal NLC corruption. “The write-up experienced aspects of information not available in the public area, thereby boosting concern on inside Info protection breaches. The allegations within the media ended up independently investigated,” Nene stated. “On the other hand, workers to blame for divulging categorised info have but being discovered”;
A 28 January 2018 posting posted by the Dally Dispatch “citing many allegations in the Limpopo Mirror short article released on ten December 2017 in addition to a new allegation associated with a previous personnel via the identify of Mzukisi Makatse. He was billed and summarily dismissed for that menace induced on the organisation.”
A 16 November 2018 write-up within the Lowvelder in regards to the misappropriation of NLC funds involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has reported how, Regardless of receiving R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab has never been done. “The Lowvelder posting contained labeled facts in terms of NLC plan, elevating more considerations of interior facts security breaches,” Nene explained in her affidavit. “The prima facie proof with regard to these allegations did not warrant an impartial Investigation, nevertheless [it] highlighted the heightened information and facts safety challenges throughout the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose a few dodgy R27.five-million grant to Denzhe Major Treatment, a hijacked NPO. Nene reported GroundUp experienced confirmed in its story that it absolutely was based on leaked NLC paperwork. This was Regardless of the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Promotion of Access to Details) request for particulars about the project, she stated