Lottery bosses turned to Point out Protection Company to analyze leaks

Lottery bosses turned to Point out Protection Company to analyze leaks

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Previous Nationwide Lotteries Commission (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda asked the Condition Safety Company (SSA) in December 2018 to analyze the leaking of paperwork that uncovered lottery corruption.
The NLC’s corporation secretary at time mentioned media studies she stated were being according to “stolen” data within an affidavit for the SSA.
The SSA did examine. It discovered the data wasn't a make a difference of point out security and which the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “enough motive” to the media to expose it.
A completely new board and administration has because taken more than the NLC and Up to now have taken actions to end corruption for the institution.
A Point out Safety Company (SSA) investigation found that the “prevalence” of alleged corruption and irregularities involving the NLC and its beneficiaries “delivered ample motive” for exposure through the media.

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

Here's

Nevhutanda’s letter,
an affidavit by currently suspended NLC organization secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the request, and
the security company’s “private” conclusions and recommendations.
Nevhutanda questioned the SSA to research the position of NLC staff members from the alleged leaking of knowledge, and Nene, in her affidavit discovered distinct media and reports that she claimed included these leaks.

Within the letter outlining its results, the SSA told the NLC that though guarding condition data was “a legal crucial directed at safeguarding the sovereignty and integrity of the condition” this only placed on correctly categorized facts.

Even though it did not say so right, the SSA results implied the allegedly leaked information did not tumble into this class.

Considerably, the SSA designed it clear that the need to shield point out information and facts “doesn't avoid any specific from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or criminal activity”.

The SSA investigation discovered the NLC info involved with the alleged breach was “delicate and privileged in nature, but not labeled when it comes to the prescripts with the Minimum amount Details Protection Requirements (Miss out on)”.

“The leakage with the appropriate delicate Formal NLC details into the media doesn't pose a risk to national safety,” the SSA said, adding that the effect of the breaches was reputational.

The SSA report found “no proof of the factual and incriminating nature towards any from the suspected NLC workers that might be recognized from the knowledge and details interrogated”.

Additionally, it said that “the prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities inside the NLC and at its beneficiaries does offer sufficient motive to have these uncovered in the media”.

Conspiracy claims
In 2020, Nevhutanda advised MPs throughout a session of Parliament’s trade, market and competition portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” by which details “stolen” with the NLC was sent on the US, where by he claimed it absolutely was remaining sold to fund a smear campaign in opposition to the NLC.

He was repeating related statements he had previously created in Parliament, which involved advertisement hominem assaults on GroundUp and this reporter but was watchful not to name both.

“I arrived right here During this August residence very last year and documented to honourable customers that specifics of our beneficiaries continues to be stolen and set in a single point out in the united states,” he told MPs.

“We referred to as to the Condition Stability Company to return take a look at the issue for the reason that we have been obtaining stories that our details is making money for media platforms and journalists,” he mentioned. “There was communicate, certainly from just one supply, a single media, that spoke Significantly about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda stated (referring to GroundUp), but didn't notify MPs which the SSA investigation had been done Pretty much a 12 months previously.

Proactive funding was at the center from the looting of the lottery. It facet-stepped the normal grant approach. The NLC could alone establish a project to fund and appoint a non-gain organisation to oversee it.

After Nevhutanda first told Parliament in 2018 that he experienced requested the SSA to investigate the meant breach, the South African Nationwide Editors Discussion board issued a press release saying that his remarks mirrored “an extremely perilous Frame of mind in which the media is being blamed to the NLC’s inherent problems”.

“Rather then investigating why thousands and thousands can not be accounted for, the NLC has rather attempted to Forged question on the integrity on the journalists involved and has asked the SSA to research their sources.”

Proactive assignments built magic formula
Protection flaws identified during the NLC grant funding program over the SSA’s investigation, surface to are already utilised being an justification through the NLC to eliminate all proactive-funded assignments from its central grants system.

“In or about 21 December 2019, the classification of all pro-actively funding jobs was heightened to ‘mystery’ and tasks were being removed from the grant funding program and managed manually under the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Details Business, Executive Manager Authorized in order to safeguard [the] details,” Nene reported in her affidavit.

“There was plenty of inner discussion, with plenty of back and forth, about how to proceed to plug the alleged leaks”, a supply, who was in a very senior placement on the NLC at the time, explained to GroundUp. “Eventually, the decision was taken to remove all the proactive projects within the process and limit entry to a handful of men and women”.

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

Maselwa, who resigned from the NLC numerous years ago, has actually been implicated in corruption involving lottery funds. He obtained R4.3-million from lottery money allocated to develop a library and museum complex in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural Songs and Arts Expo) which he utilised to create a property in an upmarket gated advancement in Pretoria. The residence is among many paid for with lottery resources which were frozen after the Asset Forfeiture Unit received a preservation buy in December 2022.

The politically-connected Nevhutanda, who was appointed as the NLC board chairperson by former President Jacob Zuma in 2009 and was near superior-ups while in the ANC Management, former NLC former Commissioner Thabang Mampane, and ex-Main working officer Phillemon Letwaba, have all been implicated within the corruption which confused the NLC on their check out.

Also implicated are former board customers William Huma, who resigned right after he was confronted with proof of how he experienced profited from corrupt lottery grants, and Muthuhadini Madzivhandila, who's got given that died.

Any time a new administration, such as the whole board and executive, took in excess of for the NLC in late 2022 and early 2023, they discovered a “chaotic mess” inside the documentation associated with proactive funding, Significantly of which was paper-based mostly. Critical files were being lacking. Data files held for safekeeping by document storage corporation Metrofile were signed out and hardly ever returned.

The NLC was ready to Get better copies of some hihuay paperwork from its Mimecast e-mail archiving method and also the laptops in their assistants and aid team.

News experiences
In his one December 2018 letter, addressed to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has pointed out with grave problem probable details stability breaches along with the unauthorised use and/or dissemination of private info received on account of executing Formal capabilities inside the Commission by NLC workers. The pursuits are meant to undermine the integrity with the Fee though disrupting the successful functions [in the NLC] and leading to insurmountable reputational harm towards the Commission as the custodian of private information entrusted to it by its beneficiaries.”

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

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

The purpose of her affidavit, Nene stated, was “to file the situations which transpired relating to details safety breaches in the Countrywide Lotteries Fee”.

She shown numerous information stories which she claimed have been the outcomes of these “breaches” (see at the conclusion of this article).

Nene explained that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that amongst its workers, Sello Qhino, experienced “delivered her classified NLC Information and persistently inspired her to deliver the knowledge to GroundUp”.

Qhino, who blew the whistle on a number of dodgy lottery-funded jobs in Kuruman after attempts to lift The problem internally ended up dismissed, was subsequently fired.

Referring to an eighteen November 2018 report inside the Every day Dispatch regarding the misappropriation of Lottery funds, Nene claimed that the NLC recognized after which you can suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an employee inside the NLC’s East London Business, who was the companion along with the mom of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s 3 children.

Rungqu and Makatse believe Rungqu was punished because Makatse blew the whistle. She was suspended and billed internally, With all the NLC spending R470,000 on attorneys to signify it, but was observed not guilty and allowed to return to work.

“The popular factor in these content is the fact that [they require] categorised info associated with proactive funding initiatives,” Nene reported in her affidavit.

When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out of the loved ones residence to take the warmth off her and his children. Facing homelessness, he moved into an office within an empty factory belonging to an acquaintance.

Both equally Makatse and Qhino are taking part in an NLC reparation method meant to recognise the harm some individuals endured in the palms from the NLC. Apologies and, occasionally, monetary payment are envisioned.

“Some people ended up really impacted incredibly negatively by this … This is really painful,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz informed the Each day Maverick very last calendar year.

“I achieved two or three these individuals. It absolutely was just so coronary heart-wrenching that their total lives have already been turned upside down,” stated Scholtz.

Among Those people she fulfilled have been Qhino and Makatse.

Protected platform desired for whistleblowers
The SSA uncovered the absence at enough time of a proper channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to show for the media.

“Failure to possess a devoted anti-corruption channel will bring about staff members presenting this sort of cases outside of the NLC,” the SSA reported in its findings.

“Supplied the magnitude of corruption in point out establishments, it remains important that it makes certain that the NLC complies with all security prescripts and that its target is on guaranteeing that unlawful and irregular perform is sufficiently mitigated versus and by making sure an suitable channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward perform without the need of staying intimidated.”

It proposed the NLC set up a “Secure channel” for workers to offer information on any “untoward action” that will not stop or discourage employees from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers coverage, according to the Shielded Disclosures Act 25 of 2000, can be a need.”

Media studies Nene mentioned
A 10 December 2017 report while in the Limpopo Mirror about corruption and maladministration involving the Lottery-funded Vhembe Health and fitness and Physical fitness Centre in Limpopo. GroundUp has labored carefully with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and operator of the Limpopo Mirror, to expose NLC corruption. “The post had elements of information not obtainable in the public area, therefore elevating problem on internal Data stability breaches. The allegations in the media were independently investigated,” Nene reported. “On the other hand, staff members chargeable for divulging categorized info have yet being recognized”;
A 28 January 2018 posting revealed by the Dally Dispatch “citing quite a few allegations in the Limpopo Mirror short article published on 10 December 2017 and also a new allegation relating to a former employee from the name of Mzukisi Makatse. He was billed and summarily dismissed for the danger caused for the organisation.”
A 16 November 2018 post within the Lowvelder about the misappropriation of NLC cash involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has documented how, in spite of acquiring R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab has never been completed. “The Lowvelder short article contained classified facts with regard to NLC policy, elevating further considerations of interior information safety breaches,” Nene claimed in her affidavit. “The prima facie proof with regards to these allegations didn't warrant an unbiased Investigation, nevertheless [it] highlighted the heightened facts stability risks within the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose about a dodgy R27.5-million grant to Denzhe Principal Treatment, a hijacked NPO. Nene explained GroundUp had verified in its Tale that it was according to leaked NLC documents. This was Regardless of the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Marketing of Access to Info) ask for for information regarding the job, she claimed