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 Fee (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda requested the Point out Security Agency (SSA) in December 2018 to research the leaking of files that uncovered lottery corruption.
The NLC’s firm secretary at some time listed media reviews she explained ended up according to “stolen” details in an affidavit for your SSA.
The SSA did investigate. It uncovered the data was not a make a difference of state protection and the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “enough motive” for that media to expose it.
A brand new board and administration has considering that taken more than the NLC and To date have taken measures to end corruption within the institution.
A Condition Protection Company (SSA) investigation identified the “prevalence” of alleged corruption and irregularities involving the NLC and its beneficiaries “provided ample motive” for exposure with the media.

The probe into intended “data stability breaches and sabotage of NLC operations” was undertaken soon 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 presently suspended NLC corporation secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the ask for, and
the security company’s “private” results and proposals.
Nevhutanda questioned the SSA to analyze the part of NLC staff inside the alleged leaking of knowledge, and Nene, in her affidavit discovered precise media and reports that she claimed concerned these leaks.

During the letter outlining its findings, the SSA told the NLC that though guarding state information was “a legal critical directed at protecting the sovereignty and integrity with the condition” this only applied to appropriately categorised details.

Although it did not say so specifically, the SSA results implied that the allegedly leaked information and facts didn't slide into this group.

Noticeably, the SSA made it obvious that the necessity to guard point out data “isn't going to stop any person from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or criminality”.

The SSA investigation uncovered the NLC details linked to the alleged breach was “delicate and privileged in mother nature, but not classified with regard to the prescripts of the Minimum Details Safety Expectations (Overlook)”.

“The leakage on the suitable sensitive official NLC information and facts into the media would not pose a menace to national stability,” the SSA claimed, including which the affect of the breaches was reputational.

The SSA report uncovered “no evidence of the factual and incriminating mother nature in opposition to any of the suspected NLC personnel that may be determined from the data and information interrogated”.

What's more, it mentioned that “the prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities within the NLC and at its beneficiaries does supply sufficient motive to acquire these types of uncovered in the media”.

Conspiracy promises
In 2020, Nevhutanda explained to MPs throughout a session of Parliament’s trade, business and Opposition portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” during which details “stolen” in the NLC was despatched on the US, in which he claimed it absolutely was currently being sold to fund a smear marketing campaign towards the NLC.

He was repeating identical claims he had Beforehand created in Parliament, which bundled ad hominem attacks on GroundUp and this reporter but was thorough not to call possibly.

“I came right here With this August house final yr and noted to honourable associates that information regarding our beneficiaries has actually been stolen and place in one state in America,” he told MPs.

“We called over the Condition Safety Agency to come back investigate the issue since we've been receiving reports that our information and facts is creating money for media platforms and journalists,” he explained. “There has been chat, obviously from just one resource, 1 media, that spoke Substantially about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda said (referring to GroundUp), but failed to inform MPs the SSA investigation were done Virtually a calendar year before.

Proactive funding was at the heart on the looting of your lottery. It facet-stepped the normal grant method. The NLC could by itself establish a challenge to fund and appoint a non-profit organisation to supervise it.

After Nevhutanda initial informed Parliament in 2018 that he experienced questioned the SSA to research the intended breach, the South African Nationwide Editors Discussion board issued a statement saying that his remarks reflected “an incredibly hazardous Mind-set the place the media is being blamed for that NLC’s inherent difficulties”.

“Rather then investigating why thousands and thousands can not be accounted for, the NLC has rather tried to Solid question around the integrity of the journalists associated and has questioned the SSA to investigate their resources.”

Proactive assignments made solution
Stability flaws identified inside the NLC grant funding technique in the course of the SSA’s investigation, show up to have been employed as an justification because of the NLC to get rid of all proactive-funded projects from its central grants procedure.

“In or about 21 December 2019, the classification of all pro-actively funding projects was heightened to ‘secret’ and jobs have been removed from the grant funding system and preserved manually underneath the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Data Office environment, Executive Manager Authorized in an effort to safeguard [the] information,” Nene explained in her affidavit.

“There was plenty of inside dialogue, with plenty of backwards and forwards, about what to do to plug the alleged leaks”, a source, who was within a senior position with the NLC at the time, instructed GroundUp. “Eventually, the decision was taken to get rid of each of the proactive assignments from your program and Restrict entry to A few folks”.

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

Maselwa, who resigned through the NLC several a long time ago, has actually been implicated in corruption involving lottery resources. He been given R4.three-million from lottery resources allotted to develop a library and museum elaborate in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural New music and Arts Expo) which he made use of to make a household in an upmarket gated advancement in Pretoria. The property is among many paid for with lottery resources that were frozen once the Asset Forfeiture Unit attained a preservation purchase 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 substantial-ups within the ANC leadership, previous NLC previous Commissioner Thabang Mampane, and ex-Main working officer Phillemon Letwaba, have all been implicated from the corruption which confused the NLC on their own observe.

Also implicated are former board customers William Huma, who resigned just 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 whole board and executive, took over at the NLC in late 2022 and early 2023, they found a “chaotic mess” in the documentation relating to proactive funding, A lot of which was paper-centered. Critical documents were being missing. Data files held for safekeeping by document storage corporation Metrofile had been signed out and hardly ever returned.

The NLC was capable to Get better copies of some หวย ลาว วัน นี้ documents from its Mimecast electronic mail archiving procedure plus the laptops of their assistants and aid staff members.

News stories
In his 1 December 2018 letter, resolved to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has noted with grave problem probable details stability breaches and also the unauthorised use and/or dissemination of confidential information and facts obtained because of doing Formal features during the Fee by NLC workforce. The activities are intended to undermine the integrity of the Fee though disrupting the helpful capabilities [on the NLC] and triggering insurmountable reputational harm to the Fee since the custodian of personal information and facts entrusted to it by its beneficiaries.”

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

Nene is at the moment facing a disciplinary inquiry immediately after she was unsuccessful in legal action to set aside conclusions of irregular expenditure on her watch.

The objective of her affidavit, Nene claimed, was “to record the activities which transpired referring to information protection breaches on the Countrywide Lotteries Commission”.

She listed several news stories which she claimed were the final results of these “breaches” (see at the end of this short article).

Nene claimed that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that certainly one of its staff members, Sello Qhino, experienced “provided her categorized NLC Data and persistently inspired her to offer the knowledge to GroundUp”.

Qhino, who blew the whistle over a number of dodgy lottery-funded initiatives in Kuruman just after tries to boost The problem internally have been dismissed, was subsequently fired.

Referring to an 18 November 2018 posting during the Each day Dispatch with regards to the misappropriation of Lottery money, Nene stated which the NLC recognized and after that suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an staff inside the NLC’s East London office, who was the lover and also the mom of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s a few kids.

Rungqu and Makatse believe that Rungqu was punished simply because Makatse blew the whistle. She was suspended and charged internally, Along with the NLC expending R470,000 on lawyers to signify it, but was identified not guilty and allowed to return to operate.

“The popular Think about these article content is that [they contain] categorised facts regarding proactive funding assignments,” Nene said in her affidavit.

When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out of your household home to go ahead and take heat off her and his small children. Dealing with homelessness, he moved into an Workplace in an empty manufacturing unit belonging to a buddy.

The two Makatse and Qhino are participating in an NLC reparation method meant to recognise the harm many people suffered within the hands of the NLC. Apologies and, in some instances, economic compensation are anticipated.

“Some persons were genuinely influenced very negatively by this … This is basically distressing,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz told the Day-to-day Maverick last yr.

“I achieved two or three these individuals. It had been just so coronary heart-wrenching that their total lives have been turned the other way up,” mentioned Scholtz.

Among the People she met have been Qhino and Makatse.

Safe and sound System needed for whistleblowers
The SSA discovered the absence at the time of a proper channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to turn towards the media.

“Failure to have a focused anti-corruption channel will bring about staff members presenting such conditions beyond the NLC,” the SSA said in its results.

“Offered the magnitude of corruption in point out institutions, it continues to be important that it makes sure that the NLC complies with all stability prescripts and that its focus is on making sure that unlawful and irregular perform is sufficiently mitigated towards and by guaranteeing an adequate channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward conduct with no staying intimidated.”

It suggested the NLC create a “safe channel” for workers to deliver information on any “untoward action” that will not protect against or discourage personnel from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers policy, determined by the Guarded Disclosures Act 25 of 2000, is a need.”

Media studies Nene mentioned
A 10 December 2017 report during the Limpopo Mirror about corruption and maladministration involving the Lottery-funded Vhembe Wellness and Health Centre in Limpopo. GroundUp has labored closely with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and owner of your Limpopo Mirror, to expose NLC corruption. “The post had components of information not offered in the public domain, thus boosting worry on inside Information and facts stability breaches. The allegations during the media were being independently investigated,” Nene said. “Nevertheless, workers liable for divulging classified facts have but to be determined”;
A 28 January 2018 short article revealed through the Dally Dispatch “citing numerous allegations with the Limpopo Mirror article revealed on ten December 2017 and a new allegation associated with a previous personnel by the title of Mzukisi Makatse. He was charged and summarily dismissed for that danger brought on for the organisation.”
A 16 November 2018 report inside the Lowvelder regarding the misappropriation of NLC money involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has noted how, Regardless of receiving R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab has never been done. “The Lowvelder posting contained labeled details when it comes to NLC plan, elevating additional fears of internal facts safety breaches,” Nene claimed in her affidavit. “The prima facie proof with regard to these allegations didn't warrant an unbiased Investigation, nonetheless [it] highlighted the heightened information and facts security risks inside the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose a couple of dodgy R27.5-million grant to Denzhe Principal Care, a hijacked NPO. Nene claimed GroundUp experienced confirmed in its story that it absolutely was according to leaked NLC files. This was despite the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Marketing of Access to Info) ask for for aspects in regards to the task, she explained