Lottery bosses turned to Condition Security Company to investigate leaks

Lottery bosses turned to Condition Security Company to investigate leaks

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Former Nationwide Lotteries Fee (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda asked the Condition Protection Company (SSA) in December 2018 to research the leaking of paperwork that exposed lottery corruption.
The NLC’s company secretary at the time outlined media studies she mentioned have been dependant on “stolen” information and facts within an affidavit to the SSA.
The SSA did investigate. It found the data was not a make any difference of condition security and the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “ample motive” for that media to expose it.
A completely new board and management has since taken in excess of the NLC and thus far have taken actions to end corruption for the establishment.
A State Safety Agency (SSA) investigation identified the “prevalence” of alleged corruption and irregularities involving the NLC and its beneficiaries “delivered enough motive” for publicity by the media.

The probe into supposed “info stability breaches and sabotage of NLC functions” was undertaken after then-NLC board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda wrote towards the SSA in December 2018 requesting it to investigate.

Here is

Nevhutanda’s letter,
an affidavit by presently suspended NLC firm secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the request, and
the security agency’s “private” conclusions and proposals.
Nevhutanda questioned the SSA to analyze the role of NLC employees inside the alleged leaking of information, and Nene, in her affidavit discovered unique media and reviews that she claimed included these leaks.

In the letter outlining its conclusions, the SSA instructed the NLC that although safeguarding condition information was “a legal imperative geared toward safeguarding the sovereignty and integrity on the state” this only placed on appropriately classified information.

Even though it did not say so immediately, the SSA conclusions implied the allegedly leaked data did not drop into this classification.

Appreciably, the SSA created it very clear that the necessity to defend state information and facts “isn't going to prevent any particular person from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or illegal activity”.

The SSA investigation uncovered that the NLC data linked to the alleged breach was “sensitive and privileged in nature, but not categorized in terms of the prescripts from the Bare minimum Facts Stability Benchmarks (MISS)”.

“The leakage from the related sensitive Formal NLC facts to your media isn't going to pose a risk to national stability,” the SSA explained, including which the affect in the breaches was reputational.

The SSA report found “no evidence of the factual and incriminating nature from any from the suspected NLC staff members that might 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 provide ample motive to get these uncovered from the media”.

Conspiracy promises
In 2020, Nevhutanda explained to MPs during 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 staying sold to fund a smear marketing campaign against the NLC.

He was repeating identical claims he experienced Beforehand created in Parliament, which included advertisement hominem attacks on GroundUp which reporter but was careful not to name either.

“I came below Within this August property very last calendar year and reported to honourable members that details about our beneficiaries has become stolen and place in one state in America,” he told MPs.

“We called on the Point out Protection Agency to come look into the make any difference mainly because we're getting experiences that our data is generating dollars for media platforms and journalists,” he mentioned. “There have been discuss, of course from one particular resource, 1 media, that spoke Considerably about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda reported (referring to GroundUp), but failed to inform MPs the SSA investigation had been concluded Pretty much a calendar year before.

Proactive funding was at the guts of your looting of your lottery. It facet-stepped the conventional grant approach. The NLC could by itself recognize a undertaking to fund and appoint a non-revenue organisation to supervise it.

Immediately after Nevhutanda initially advised Parliament in 2018 that he experienced requested the SSA to analyze the intended breach, the South African Countrywide Editors Discussion board issued an announcement declaring that his remarks mirrored “a particularly hazardous Frame of mind exactly where the media is remaining blamed for your NLC’s inherent challenges”.

“Rather then investigating why thousands and thousands cannot be accounted for, the NLC has as a substitute tried to Solid question on the integrity in the journalists concerned and it has requested the SSA to research their resources.”

Proactive initiatives made magic formula
Security flaws identified inside the NLC grant funding program through the SSA’s investigation, seem to have already been employed as an excuse with the NLC to remove all proactive-funded assignments from its central grants method.

“In or about 21 December 2019, the classification of all pro-actively funding initiatives was heightened to ‘top secret’ and jobs have been faraway from the grant funding technique and maintained manually beneath the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Information and facts Business office, Government Supervisor Authorized so that you can safeguard [the] information,” Nene stated in her affidavit.

“There was plenty of inner discussion, with lots of back and forth, about how to proceed to plug the alleged leaks”, a supply, who was inside a senior position within the NLC at enough time, informed GroundUp. “Eventually, the decision was taken to eliminate the many proactive tasks within the program and Restrict access to a handful of people today”.

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

Maselwa, who resigned from the NLC many decades back, continues to be implicated in corruption involving lottery money. He acquired R4.three-million from lottery cash allocated to create a library and museum intricate in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural Tunes and Arts Expo) which he applied to develop a dwelling within an upmarket gated advancement in Pretoria. The home is among various paid out for with lottery funds which were frozen after the Asset Forfeiture Device obtained a preservation get in December 2022.

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

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 complete board and executive, took above on the NLC in late 2022 and early 2023, they identified a “chaotic mess” inside the documentation referring to proactive funding, A lot of which was paper-centered. Critical documents were being missing. Data files held for safekeeping by document storage enterprise Metrofile had been signed out and never returned.

The NLC was capable to recover copies of some หวย หุ้น files from its Mimecast e mail archiving technique along with the laptops of their assistants and aid staff members.

News experiences
In his 1 December 2018 letter, addressed to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has observed with grave concern doable details stability breaches as well as the unauthorised use and/or dissemination of private info received on account of carrying out official features from the Fee by NLC employees. The routines are intended to undermine the integrity on the Commission although disrupting the powerful features [on the NLC] and triggering insurmountable reputational damage for the Commission given that the custodian of private data entrusted to it by its beneficiaries.”

His request with 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 watch.

The objective of her affidavit, Nene reported, was “to document the gatherings which transpired relating to data protection breaches within the Countrywide Lotteries Fee”.

She listed numerous news reviews which she claimed had been the outcome of those “breaches” (see at the end of this post).

Nene mentioned that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that among its staff, Sello Qhino, experienced “delivered 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 tasks in Kuruman after makes an attempt to lift the issue internally ended up ignored, was subsequently fired.

Referring to an 18 November 2018 report in the Everyday Dispatch about the misappropriation of Lottery funds, Nene mentioned the NLC recognized and afterwards suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an staff during the NLC’s East London office, who was the companion and also the mom of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s 3 young children.

Rungqu and Makatse imagine Rungqu was punished due to the fact Makatse blew the whistle. She was suspended and charged internally, While using the NLC paying out R470,000 on lawyers to stand for it, but was located not responsible and allowed to return to work.

“The common Consider these article content is always that [they contain] classified data concerning proactive funding projects,” Nene mentioned in her affidavit.

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

Both equally Makatse and Qhino are taking part in an NLC reparation procedure intended to recognise the harm lots of people endured within the palms from the NLC. Apologies and, in some instances, monetary payment are predicted.

“Some men and women had been really afflicted very negatively by this … This is de facto painful,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz instructed the Every day Maverick previous 12 months.

“I fulfilled two or three these people. It was just so coronary heart-wrenching that their whole lives have already been turned the wrong way up,” reported Scholtz.

Amongst People she fulfilled were being Qhino and Makatse.

Protected platform needed for whistleblowers
The SSA found the absence at enough time of a suitable channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to turn towards the media.

“Failure to possess a devoted anti-corruption channel will lead to personnel presenting such conditions outside of the NLC,” the SSA claimed in its findings.

“Given the magnitude of corruption in state institutions, it stays crucial that it ensures that the NLC complies with all protection prescripts Which its concentration is on making certain that unlawful and irregular carry out is adequately mitigated in opposition to and by making certain an ample channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward carry out with no currently being intimidated.”

It advisable the NLC set up a “Risk-free channel” for employees to provide info on any “untoward action” that might not avert or discourage workforce from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers coverage, determined by the Guarded Disclosures Act twenty five of 2000, can be a requirement.”

Media experiences Nene shown
A ten December 2017 report while in the Limpopo Mirror about corruption and maladministration involving the Lottery-funded Vhembe Well being and Conditioning Centre in Limpopo. GroundUp has worked carefully with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and owner with the Limpopo Mirror, to expose NLC corruption. “The report experienced features of information not obtainable in the public domain, thereby elevating worry on inside Information and facts stability breaches. The allegations from the media ended up independently investigated,” Nene reported. “However, employees answerable for divulging categorized info have yet to be determined”;
A 28 January 2018 post released through the Dally Dispatch “citing many allegations within the Limpopo Mirror report published on ten December 2017 and a new allegation associated with a previous personnel because of the title of Mzukisi Makatse. He was charged and summarily dismissed for that menace prompted into the organisation.”
A sixteen November 2018 report while in the Lowvelder about the misappropriation of NLC resources involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has documented how, in spite of acquiring R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab has not been finished. “The Lowvelder article contained labeled details in terms of NLC coverage, boosting more fears of internal facts security breaches,” Nene explained in her affidavit. “The prima facie proof with regard to these allegations did not warrant an unbiased Investigation, nonetheless [it] highlighted the heightened information and facts security hazards inside the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose a couple of dodgy R27.five-million grant to Denzhe Key Care, a hijacked NPO. Nene mentioned GroundUp had verified in its Tale that it had been determined by leaked NLC documents. This was Regardless of the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Marketing of Entry to Info) ask for for information in regards to the venture, she reported