Lottery bosses turned to State Security Agency to research leaks

Lottery bosses turned to State Security Agency to research leaks

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Former National Lotteries Fee (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda asked the State Security Company (SSA) in December 2018 to investigate the leaking of files that uncovered lottery corruption.
The NLC’s firm secretary at some time mentioned media reviews she mentioned were based upon “stolen” information and facts within an affidavit to the SSA.
The SSA did investigate. It identified the knowledge wasn't a matter of condition protection and that the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “ample motive” with the media to expose it.
A whole new board and management has considering the fact that taken around the NLC and To date have taken measures to end corruption for the institution.
A Condition Stability Company (SSA) investigation observed that the “prevalence” of alleged corruption and irregularities involving the NLC and its beneficiaries “presented sufficient motive” for exposure because of the media.

The probe into intended “facts safety breaches and sabotage of NLC functions” was carried out immediately after then-NLC board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda wrote towards the SSA in December 2018 requesting it to research.

Here's

Nevhutanda’s letter,
an affidavit by presently suspended NLC firm secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the ask for, and
the safety agency’s “private” conclusions and proposals.
Nevhutanda requested the SSA to research the function of NLC team within the alleged leaking of knowledge, and Nene, in her affidavit determined certain media and stories that she claimed associated these leaks.

During the letter outlining its results, the SSA advised the NLC that when safeguarding condition details was “a authorized essential geared toward guarding the sovereignty and integrity of your condition” this only placed on correctly categorised information.

Even though it did not say so directly, the SSA results implied that the allegedly leaked facts did not fall into this category.

Noticeably, the SSA built it apparent that the necessity to defend state data “isn't going to stop any personal from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or criminal activity”.

The SSA investigation located the NLC information involved in the alleged breach was “delicate and privileged in nature, although not labeled in terms of the prescripts of your Minimum Info Security Criteria (Overlook)”.

“The leakage on the related delicate official NLC information to your media won't pose a menace to nationwide protection,” the SSA claimed, including the effects from the breaches was reputational.

The SSA report observed “no evidence of a factual and incriminating mother nature from any in the suspected NLC employees that would be discovered from the information and information interrogated”.

Additionally, it said that “the prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities throughout the NLC and at its beneficiaries does give ample motive to have this kind of exposed during the media”.

Conspiracy claims
In 2020, Nevhutanda informed MPs for the duration of a session of Parliament’s trade, market and Level of competition portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” wherein data “stolen” from your NLC was despatched into the US, where by he claimed it absolutely was staying marketed to fund a smear campaign in opposition to the NLC.

He was repeating similar claims he experienced Beforehand made in Parliament, which incorporated advertisement hominem attacks on GroundUp which reporter but was very careful not to name possibly.

“I came here in this August dwelling past yr and reported to honourable members that information about our beneficiaries has long been stolen and put in a single state in the usa,” he instructed MPs.

“We known as on the Condition Security Company to come check into the matter due to the fact we have been having reports that our info is producing revenue for media platforms and journalists,” he stated. “There's been talk, of course from a person resource, a person media, that spoke A lot about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda mentioned (referring to GroundUp), but didn't inform MPs that the SSA investigation were finished Virtually a 12 months previously.

Proactive funding was at the center on the looting in the lottery. It side-stepped the traditional grant system. The NLC could by itself determine a undertaking to fund and appoint a non-revenue organisation to supervise it.

Following Nevhutanda initially told Parliament in 2018 that he had asked the SSA to analyze the meant breach, the South African National Editors Discussion board issued a statement declaring that his remarks reflected “an incredibly risky Perspective where by the media is being blamed with the NLC’s inherent issues”.

“As an alternative to investigating why tens of millions cannot be accounted for, the NLC has as a substitute attempted to cast question over the integrity in the journalists involved and it has requested the SSA to research their sources.”

Proactive jobs produced mystery
Stability flaws identified within the NLC grant funding procedure in the course of the SSA’s investigation, surface to are already utilised as an justification via the NLC to get rid of all proactive-funded tasks from its central grants program.

“In or about 21 December 2019, the classification of all Professional-actively funding projects was heightened to ‘secret’ and projects had been faraway from the grant funding technique and taken care of manually under the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Information and facts Place of work, Executive Supervisor Authorized so that you can safeguard [the] facts,” Nene claimed in her affidavit.

“There was a great deal of internal dialogue, with plenty of forwards and backwards, about what to do to plug the alleged leaks”, a resource, who was inside a senior posture in the NLC at time, instructed GroundUp. “Eventually, the choice was taken to get rid of many of the proactive jobs within the system and limit access to A few men and women”.

Some in that handful of folks were implicated in corruption.

Maselwa, who resigned from your NLC several a long time back, has long been implicated in corruption involving lottery cash. He acquired R4.three-million from lottery money allotted to construct a library and museum elaborate in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural Songs and Arts Expo) which he utilized to make a household in an upmarket gated development in Pretoria. The residence is among numerous compensated for with lottery resources that were frozen after the Asset Forfeiture Unit received a preservation order in December 2022.

The politically-related Nevhutanda, who was appointed as being the NLC board chairperson by former President Jacob Zuma in 2009 and was near to superior-ups within the ANC leadership, previous NLC previous Commissioner Thabang Mampane, and ex-Main functioning officer Phillemon Letwaba, have all been implicated during the corruption which confused the NLC on their observe.

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

Each time a new administration, such as the entire board and executive, took about at the NLC in late 2022 and early 2023, they identified a “chaotic mess” during the documentation referring to proactive funding, Substantially of which was paper-based. Important documents had been missing. Information held for safekeeping by document storage enterprise Metrofile were signed out and never returned.

The NLC was capable to Recuperate copies of some สลาก กิน รัฐบาล documents from its Mimecast e-mail archiving program along with the laptops of their assistants and assist staff members.

News reports
In his one December 2018 letter, resolved to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has famous with grave concern probable facts safety breaches and also the unauthorised use and/or dissemination of private information received because of executing Formal features during the Commission by NLC personnel. The functions are meant to undermine the integrity of the Commission although disrupting the powerful features [of your NLC] and creating insurmountable reputational harm towards the Fee given that the custodian of private information and facts entrusted to it by its beneficiaries.”

His ask for with the SSA to analyze was supported within an affidavit by suspended NLC firm secretary, Nomphumelelo Nene.

Nene is at the moment going through a disciplinary inquiry immediately after she was unsuccessful in legal motion to put aside findings of irregular expenditure on her observe.

The purpose of her affidavit, Nene claimed, was “to record the situations which transpired regarding info security breaches within the National Lotteries Commission”.

She shown different information stories which she claimed were the outcome of those “breaches” (see at the conclusion of this information).

Nene said that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that amongst its personnel, Sello Qhino, experienced “delivered her categorised NLC Information and facts and persistently encouraged her to supply the knowledge to GroundUp”.

Qhino, who blew the whistle on a series of dodgy lottery-funded assignments in Kuruman right after attempts to lift the issue internally were overlooked, was subsequently fired.

Referring to an eighteen November 2018 post during the Everyday Dispatch with regard to the misappropriation of Lottery money, Nene mentioned that the NLC determined after which suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an worker in the NLC’s East London office, who was the lover along with the mother of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s 3 small children.

Rungqu and Makatse think Rungqu was punished due to the fact Makatse blew the whistle. She was suspended and charged internally, While using the NLC spending R470,000 on lawyers to symbolize it, but was identified not responsible and allowed to return to work.

“The typical Think about these content is the fact [they entail] categorised information and facts concerning proactive funding initiatives,” Nene stated in her affidavit.

When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out with the family members household to go ahead and take warmth off her and his children. Dealing with homelessness, he moved into an Office environment within an vacant manufacturing facility belonging to a colleague.

Both equally Makatse and Qhino are participating in an NLC reparation method intended to recognise the hurt some people experienced for the fingers from the NLC. Apologies and, in some cases, financial payment are expected.

“Some people today have been really impacted very negatively by this … This is de facto distressing,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz informed the Each day Maverick last yr.

“I achieved two or three these persons. It was just so heart-wrenching that their complete lives are turned the other way up,” reported Scholtz.

Between Those people she achieved had been Qhino and Makatse.

Risk-free System wanted for whistleblowers
The SSA observed the absence at enough time of a correct channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to show to your media.

“Failure to have a committed anti-corruption channel will lead to workforce presenting these instances beyond the NLC,” the SSA said in its findings.

“Supplied the magnitude of corruption in point out institutions, it remains vital that it makes sure that the NLC complies with all protection prescripts Which its concentration is on ensuring that illegal and irregular carry out is adequately mitigated from and by making sure an sufficient channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward conduct with out becoming intimidated.”

It suggested which the NLC create a “Protected channel” for employees to offer information on any “untoward exercise” that could not avoid or discourage workers from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers plan, depending on the Protected Disclosures Act 25 of 2000, is a necessity.”

Media experiences Nene outlined
A 10 December 2017 report from the Limpopo Mirror about corruption and maladministration involving the Lottery-funded Vhembe Well being and Health Centre in Limpopo. GroundUp has labored carefully with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and proprietor of your Limpopo Mirror, to show NLC corruption. “The posting experienced things of knowledge not readily available in the general public domain, thereby boosting worry on inner Info security breaches. The allegations during the media ended up independently investigated,” Nene mentioned. “Nevertheless, employees chargeable for divulging categorized information have nevertheless to become discovered”;
A 28 January 2018 post posted through the Dally Dispatch “citing many allegations through the Limpopo Mirror posting printed on 10 December 2017 plus a new allegation concerning a previous personnel via the identify of Mzukisi Makatse. He was billed and summarily dismissed to the risk triggered for the organisation.”
A 16 November 2018 article in the Lowvelder regarding the misappropriation of NLC funds involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has claimed how, Regardless of receiving R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab has not been completed. “The Lowvelder short article contained categorized information and facts regarding NLC plan, raising even further issues of inside information and facts security breaches,” Nene explained in her affidavit. “The prima facie proof with regards to these allegations didn't warrant an unbiased Investigation, however [it] highlighted the heightened details safety pitfalls in the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose a couple of dodgy R27.5-million grant to Denzhe Main Care, a hijacked NPO. Nene said GroundUp experienced verified in its story that it absolutely was dependant on leaked NLC paperwork. This was despite the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Advertising of Use of Data) request for aspects with regard to the task, she stated