Lottery bosses turned to Condition Protection Company to analyze leaks

Lottery bosses turned to Condition Protection Company to analyze leaks

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Previous Nationwide Lotteries Commission (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda questioned the State Stability Agency (SSA) in December 2018 to analyze the leaking of documents that exposed lottery corruption.
The NLC’s organization secretary at some time detailed media experiences she mentioned ended up determined by “stolen” information in an affidavit for your SSA.
The SSA did examine. It observed the data wasn't a make any difference of point out stability and which the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “sufficient motive” for that media to reveal it.
A different board and management has considering that taken in excess of the NLC and So far have taken measures to finish corruption on the establishment.
A Condition Security Company (SSA) investigation discovered which the “prevalence” of alleged corruption and irregularities involving the NLC and its beneficiaries “offered enough motive” for exposure via the media.

The probe into supposed “information and facts safety breaches and sabotage of NLC operations” was carried out following then-NLC board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda wrote on the SSA in December 2018 requesting it to analyze.

Here's

Nevhutanda’s letter,
an affidavit by presently suspended NLC firm secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the ask for, and
the safety company’s “confidential” findings and recommendations.
Nevhutanda requested the SSA to investigate the role of NLC employees in the alleged leaking of data, and Nene, in her affidavit determined unique media and studies that she claimed associated these leaks.

Within the letter outlining its results, the SSA informed the NLC that even though safeguarding state info was “a legal critical aimed at defending the sovereignty and integrity on the condition” this only applied to properly classified details.

Even though it didn't say so right, the SSA findings implied that the allegedly leaked facts didn't slide into this classification.

Appreciably, the SSA created it clear that the necessity to guard state information and facts “isn't going to reduce any individual from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or criminality”.

The SSA investigation uncovered which the NLC data associated with the alleged breach was “delicate and privileged in character, although not categorized with regards to the prescripts of the Least Details Stability Specifications (Pass up)”.

“The leakage on the applicable sensitive official NLC data to the media will not pose a menace to nationwide protection,” the SSA reported, adding which the impact from the breaches was reputational.

The SSA report identified “no evidence of the factual and incriminating mother nature versus any with the suspected NLC workforce which could be determined from the knowledge and information interrogated”.

In addition, it stated that “the prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities in the NLC and at its beneficiaries does supply enough motive to own this kind of uncovered within the media”.

Conspiracy statements
In 2020, Nevhutanda told MPs through a session of Parliament’s trade, business and Level of competition portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” during which facts “stolen” from the NLC was sent towards the US, in which he claimed it had been currently being marketed to fund a smear campaign in opposition to the NLC.

He was repeating related statements he had Beforehand built in Parliament, which bundled advertisement hominem attacks on GroundUp which reporter but was watchful not to name possibly.

“I came in this article With this August property last 12 months and noted to honourable users that details about our beneficiaries has been stolen and place in a single point out in America,” he advised MPs.

“We termed around the Condition Protection Company to return look into the issue for the reason that we've been getting reports that our info is producing funds for media platforms and journalists,” he explained. “There's been discuss, needless to say from a single resource, a person media, that spoke Substantially about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda explained (referring to GroundUp), but failed to notify MPs that the SSA investigation were finished Pretty much a yr before.

Proactive funding was at the heart on the looting of the lottery. It side-stepped the conventional grant method. The NLC could alone discover a project to fund and appoint a non-financial gain organisation to oversee it.

Immediately after Nevhutanda initial instructed Parliament in 2018 that he experienced asked the SSA to research the intended breach, the South African Countrywide Editors Discussion board issued a statement stating that his remarks reflected “a very perilous Mindset in which the media is becoming blamed for the NLC’s inherent troubles”.

“As opposed to investigating why hundreds of thousands can't be accounted for, the NLC has as an alternative tried to Forged doubt on the integrity of the journalists included and it has requested the SSA to analyze their sources.”

Proactive initiatives created magic formula
Security flaws determined within the NLC grant funding program in the SSA’s investigation, appear to are already employed as an excuse via the NLC to get rid of all proactive-funded initiatives from its central grants method.

“In or about 21 December 2019, the classification of all Professional-actively funding jobs was heightened to ‘solution’ and initiatives have been removed from the grant funding technique and taken care of manually underneath the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Information Business office, Govt Supervisor Lawful as a way to safeguard [the] info,” Nene said in her affidavit.

“There was plenty of inside discussion, with numerous backwards and forwards, about how to proceed to plug the alleged leaks”, a resource, who was in a very senior position on the NLC at enough time, instructed GroundUp. “Ultimately, the decision was taken to eliminate each of the proactive projects within the program and Restrict access to A few men and women”.

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

Maselwa, who resigned in the NLC many decades ago, has long been implicated in corruption involving lottery funds. He been given R4.3-million from lottery resources allocated to create a library and museum elaborate in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural Music and Arts Expo) which he employed to build a property within an upmarket gated growth in Pretoria. The property is among a number of paid out for with lottery cash that were frozen following the Asset Forfeiture Device attained a preservation order in December 2022.

The politically-linked Nevhutanda, who was appointed given that the NLC board chairperson by former President Jacob Zuma in 2009 and was close to large-ups in the ANC leadership, previous NLC previous Commissioner Thabang Mampane, and ex-Main functioning officer Phillemon Letwaba, have all been implicated in the corruption which overwhelmed the NLC on their own watch.

Also implicated are previous board customers William Huma, who resigned after he was confronted with proof of how he had profited from corrupt lottery grants, and Muthuhadini Madzivhandila, that has since died.

Any time a new administration, including the entire board and government, took more than within the NLC in late 2022 and early 2023, they learned a “chaotic mess” while in the documentation referring to proactive funding, much of which was paper-dependent. Important paperwork were being missing. Information held for safekeeping by document storage enterprise Metrofile were signed out and never returned.

The NLC was in the position to Get better copies of some ruay documents from its Mimecast email archiving process and also the laptops of their assistants and aid employees.

News studies
In his one December 2018 letter, resolved to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has pointed out with grave issue possible info safety breaches as well as the unauthorised use and/or dissemination of confidential info acquired because of executing official features inside the Fee by NLC staff members. The pursuits are meant to undermine the integrity with the Commission when disrupting the powerful capabilities [with the NLC] and leading to insurmountable reputational damage to the Commission given that the custodian of private info entrusted to it by its beneficiaries.”

His ask for for that SSA to analyze was supported within an affidavit by suspended NLC company secretary, Nomphumelelo Nene.

Nene is at this time struggling with a disciplinary inquiry right after she was unsuccessful in legal motion to put aside findings of irregular expenditure on her view.

The purpose of her affidavit, Nene reported, was “to report the functions which transpired referring to information protection breaches on the Countrywide Lotteries Commission”.

She mentioned different information studies which she claimed were the final results of these “breaches” (see at the end of this short article).

Nene explained that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that certainly one of its personnel, Sello Qhino, experienced “offered her labeled NLC Facts and persistently inspired her to deliver the data 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 ended up disregarded, was subsequently fired.

Referring to an 18 November 2018 report while in the Day-to-day Dispatch with regard to the misappropriation of Lottery cash, Nene mentioned that the NLC determined after which suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an staff within the NLC’s East London Business, who was the companion plus the mom of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s a few children.

Rungqu and Makatse feel Rungqu was punished mainly because Makatse blew the whistle. She was suspended and billed internally, Along with the NLC expending R470,000 on legal professionals to represent it, but was discovered not guilty and allowed to return to work.

“The typical Think about these articles is the fact that [they involve] categorised information and facts regarding proactive funding assignments,” Nene said in her affidavit.

When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out with the loved ones home to take the warmth off her and his small children. Facing homelessness, he moved into an Workplace in an vacant manufacturing unit belonging to a buddy.

Equally Makatse and Qhino are taking part in an NLC reparation approach intended to recognise the damage some people endured in the hands on the NLC. Apologies and, occasionally, economical compensation are envisioned.

“Some folks were actually impacted pretty negatively by this … This is admittedly unpleasant,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz explained to the Day by day Maverick past calendar year.

“I satisfied several these persons. It had been just so heart-wrenching that their total lives happen to be turned the other way up,” mentioned Scholtz.

Between These she fulfilled were Qhino and Makatse.

Harmless platform essential for whistleblowers
The SSA found the absence at some time of an appropriate channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to show into the media.

“Failure to have a focused anti-corruption channel will bring about workers presenting these types of instances outside of the NLC,” the SSA stated in its results.

“Given the magnitude of corruption in state institutions, it remains vital that it ensures that the NLC complies with all security prescripts Which its concentrate is on ensuring that unlawful and irregular conduct is sufficiently mitigated from and by making certain an sufficient channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward carry out without staying intimidated.”

It suggested the NLC establish a “Harmless channel” for employees to offer info on any “untoward exercise” that might not prevent or discourage staff members from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers coverage, based on the Guarded Disclosures Act 25 of 2000, can be a prerequisite.”

Media stories Nene listed
A ten December 2017 report during the Limpopo Mirror about corruption and maladministration involving the Lottery-funded Vhembe Health and Health and fitness Centre in Limpopo. GroundUp has labored carefully with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and operator on the Limpopo Mirror, to reveal NLC corruption. “The post experienced components of data not readily available in the public domain, thus raising problem on inside Details protection breaches. The allegations in the media had been independently investigated,” Nene claimed. “Nevertheless, personnel accountable for divulging labeled information have however for being recognized”;
A 28 January 2018 short article posted because of the Dally Dispatch “citing various allegations within the Limpopo Mirror article published on ten December 2017 as well as a new allegation relating to a previous employee because of the name of Mzukisi Makatse. He was billed and summarily dismissed for your danger triggered to the organisation.”
A 16 November 2018 report in the Lowvelder with regard to the misappropriation of NLC money involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has documented how, Regardless of acquiring R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab hasn't been completed. “The Lowvelder short article contained labeled information and facts with regards to NLC policy, raising additional issues of interior information and facts protection breaches,” Nene mentioned in her affidavit. “The prima facie proof regarding these allegations did not warrant an unbiased Investigation, even so [it] highlighted the heightened details security challenges inside the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose a few dodgy R27.five-million grant to Denzhe Most important Care, a hijacked NPO. Nene explained GroundUp experienced confirmed in its story that it absolutely was determined by leaked NLC files. This was Regardless of the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Promotion of Entry to Facts) ask for for details with regard to the project, she stated

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