Lottery bosses turned to State Security Agency to investigate leaks

Lottery bosses turned to State Security Agency to investigate leaks

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Former Nationwide Lotteries Commission (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda requested the Point out Stability Company (SSA) in December 2018 to investigate the leaking of documents that exposed lottery corruption.
The NLC’s firm secretary at enough time stated media experiences she said were being according to “stolen” details within an affidavit with the SSA.
The SSA did examine. It identified the data was not a make a difference of point out safety and which the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “ample motive” with the media to reveal it.
A new board and management has because taken about the NLC and So far have taken actions to finish corruption within 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 from the media.

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

Here is

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

In the letter outlining its findings, the SSA advised the NLC that though guarding condition data was “a authorized very important aimed at shielding the sovereignty and integrity with the state” this only applied to appropriately categorised facts.

Even though it did not say so straight, the SSA results implied which the allegedly leaked info did not fall into this category.

Drastically, the SSA made it distinct that the necessity to defend state facts “will not stop any particular person from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or criminal activity”.

The SSA investigation found which the NLC details associated with the alleged breach was “sensitive and privileged in mother nature, although not categorised concerning the prescripts in the Least Details Safety Standards (Skip)”.

“The leakage from the relevant delicate official NLC info to the media won't pose a danger to national stability,” the SSA reported, including that the impression in the breaches was reputational.

The SSA report found “no evidence of the factual and incriminating nature from any from the suspected NLC workforce that can be discovered from the information and knowledge interrogated”.

Additionally, it said that “the prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities in the NLC and at its beneficiaries does deliver ample motive to possess this sort of exposed while in the media”.

Conspiracy statements
In 2020, Nevhutanda advised MPs through a session of Parliament’s trade, field and competition portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” in which information and facts “stolen” with the NLC was sent to the US, where by he claimed it had been being marketed to fund a smear marketing campaign in opposition to the NLC.

He was repeating comparable statements he experienced previously manufactured in Parliament, which included advertisement hominem assaults on GroundUp which reporter but was careful not to name either.

“I came below in this August residence previous 12 months and claimed to honourable users that information about our beneficiaries continues to be stolen and put in a single point out in the united states,” he advised MPs.

“We named about the State Stability Company to come look into the make any difference mainly because we're getting stories that our data is generating income for media platforms and journalists,” he stated. “There was talk, not surprisingly from 1 supply, just one media, that spoke A lot about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda explained (referring to GroundUp), but did not notify MPs which the SSA investigation were done almost a 12 months before.

Proactive funding was at the heart in the looting with the lottery. It facet-stepped the traditional grant procedure. The NLC could itself recognize a job to fund and appoint a non-gain organisation to supervise it.

Just after Nevhutanda to start with explained to Parliament in 2018 that he experienced requested the SSA to investigate the supposed breach, the South African Countrywide Editors Forum issued a statement indicating that his remarks reflected “a particularly dangerous Angle wherever the media is getting blamed for the NLC’s inherent challenges”.

“As an alternative to investigating why millions can't be accounted for, the NLC has instead tried to Solid question on the integrity in the journalists included and it has questioned the SSA to analyze their resources.”

Proactive projects produced mystery
Protection flaws determined during the NLC grant funding procedure during the SSA’s investigation, appear to have been used being an justification through the NLC to remove all proactive-funded jobs from its central grants process.

“In or about 21 December 2019, the classification of all pro-actively funding projects was heightened to ‘top secret’ and projects were being removed from the grant funding program and preserved manually underneath the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Information and facts Office environment, Govt Supervisor Authorized to be able to safeguard [the] details,” Nene mentioned in her affidavit.

“There was loads of inner dialogue, with lots of forwards and backwards, about what to do to plug the alleged leaks”, a resource, who was in the senior place with the NLC at enough time, explained to GroundUp. “Eventually, the decision was taken to remove all of the proactive projects within the process and limit use of A few men and women”.

Some in that handful of people ended up implicated in corruption.

Maselwa, who resigned in the NLC various many years in the past, continues to be implicated in corruption involving lottery money. He gained R4.three-million from lottery funds allocated to build a library and museum intricate in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural New music and Arts Expo) which he applied to construct a home in an upmarket gated advancement in Pretoria. The house is among various paid out for with lottery funds which were frozen after the Asset Forfeiture Device received a preservation order in December 2022.

The politically-connected Nevhutanda, who was appointed because the NLC board chairperson by former President Jacob Zuma in 2009 and was near superior-ups within the ANC Management, previous NLC previous Commissioner Thabang Mampane, and ex-chief working officer Phillemon Letwaba, have all been implicated during the corruption which overwhelmed the NLC on their look at.

Also implicated are previous board users William Huma, who resigned following he was confronted with evidence of how he had profited from corrupt lottery grants, and Muthuhadini Madzivhandila, who has due to the fact died.

Every time a new administration, such as the total board and government, took above with the NLC in late 2022 and early 2023, they uncovered a “chaotic mess” inside the documentation referring to proactive funding, A lot of which was paper-based. Vital documents were being missing. Data files held for safekeeping by document storage enterprise Metrofile had been signed out and hardly ever returned.

The NLC was in the position to recover copies of some ตรวจ หวย ลาว วัน นี้ files from its Mimecast e mail archiving technique along with the laptops of their assistants and guidance workers.

Information reviews
In his one December 2018 letter, addressed to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has observed with grave concern attainable information safety breaches as well as unauthorised use and/or dissemination of private details received on account of performing official functions within the Commission by NLC staff. The pursuits are intended to undermine the integrity in the Commission whilst disrupting the efficient functions [of your NLC] and producing insurmountable reputational hurt on the Commission given that the custodian of non-public info entrusted to it by its beneficiaries.”

His ask for to the SSA to investigate was supported in an affidavit by suspended NLC business secretary, Nomphumelelo Nene.

Nene is now going through a disciplinary inquiry after she was unsuccessful in authorized motion to put aside conclusions of irregular expenditure on her observe.

The goal of her affidavit, Nene said, was “to document the gatherings which transpired relating to info safety breaches with the Nationwide Lotteries Commission”.

She detailed a variety of news studies which she claimed have been the outcome of these “breaches” (see at the conclusion of this short article).

Nene said that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that one of its workforce, Sello Qhino, had “provided her labeled NLC Details and persistently inspired her to supply the data to GroundUp”.

Qhino, who blew the whistle on the number of dodgy lottery-funded projects in Kuruman soon after tries to raise The problem internally were being ignored, was subsequently fired.

Referring to an 18 November 2018 report during the Every day Dispatch with regards to the misappropriation of Lottery resources, Nene reported which the NLC discovered and then suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an staff during the NLC’s East London office, who was the partner and the mom of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s three children.

Rungqu and Makatse consider Rungqu was punished for the reason that Makatse blew the whistle. She was suspended and charged internally, with the NLC paying out R470,000 on lawyers to stand for it, but was identified not responsible and permitted to return to work.

“The widespread Think about these content articles is usually that [they include] categorized facts relating to proactive funding tasks,” Nene explained in her affidavit.

When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out with the spouse and children home to go ahead and take warmth off her and his little ones. Experiencing homelessness, he moved into an Office environment in an empty manufacturing unit belonging to a buddy.

The two Makatse and Qhino are participating in an NLC reparation course of action intended to recognise the hurt a lot of people suffered within the fingers of your NLC. Apologies and, in some instances, economical compensation are predicted.

“Some individuals have been definitely affected really negatively by this … This is admittedly painful,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz informed the Day-to-day Maverick very last 12 months.

“I fulfilled a handful of these people today. It absolutely was just so coronary heart-wrenching that their complete lives happen to be turned upside down,” said Scholtz.

Among the All those she fulfilled had been Qhino and Makatse.

Safe System necessary for whistleblowers
The SSA found the absence at enough time of a proper channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to show to the media.

“Failure to have a focused anti-corruption channel will lead to workforce presenting such instances outside of the NLC,” the SSA stated in its findings.

“Specified the magnitude of corruption in point out establishments, it remains essential that it makes certain that the NLC complies with all protection prescripts and that its focus is on guaranteeing that illegal and irregular perform is adequately mitigated versus and by guaranteeing an sufficient channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward carry out with out staying intimidated.”

It advised which the NLC set up a “Risk-free channel” for employees to offer info on any “untoward exercise” that will not avoid or discourage staff from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers policy, based upon the Secured Disclosures Act 25 of 2000, is really a prerequisite.”

Media experiences Nene outlined
A 10 December 2017 report inside the Limpopo Mirror about corruption and maladministration involving the Lottery-funded Vhembe Wellbeing and Conditioning Centre in Limpopo. GroundUp has labored intently with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and owner on the Limpopo Mirror, to show NLC corruption. “The article had aspects of knowledge not readily available in the general public area, thereby increasing concern on inner Details stability breaches. The allegations inside the media were independently investigated,” Nene said. “However, staff members answerable for divulging categorised information and facts have but to become recognized”;
A 28 January 2018 posting published with the Dally Dispatch “citing quite a few allegations from your Limpopo Mirror posting posted on ten December 2017 plus a new allegation regarding a former worker via the title of Mzukisi Makatse. He was charged and summarily dismissed with the menace brought about for the organisation.”
A 16 November 2018 post within the Lowvelder in regards to the misappropriation of NLC money involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has noted how, Despite obtaining R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab has never been accomplished. “The Lowvelder posting contained categorized facts with regard to NLC plan, elevating further more considerations of interior info safety breaches,” Nene reported in her affidavit. “The prima facie proof regarding these allegations did not warrant an independent Investigation, nonetheless [it] highlighted the heightened details security pitfalls in the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose a couple of dodgy R27.5-million grant to Denzhe Principal Care, a hijacked NPO. Nene mentioned GroundUp had verified in its story that it was depending on leaked NLC documents. This was Regardless of the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Marketing of Entry to Info) ask for for specifics regarding the venture, she reported