Lottery bosses turned to Condition Security Agency to investigate leaks

Lottery bosses turned to Condition Security Agency to investigate leaks

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Previous Nationwide Lotteries Fee (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda requested the State Stability Agency (SSA) in December 2018 to investigate the leaking of files that uncovered lottery corruption.
The NLC’s organization secretary at some time listed media reports she said ended up based upon “stolen” info in an affidavit for that SSA.
The SSA did investigate. It identified the knowledge wasn't a matter of state protection and which the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “ample motive” for that media to expose it.
A fresh board and management has due to the fact taken over the NLC and thus far have taken steps to finish corruption with the institution.
A Point out Protection Agency (SSA) investigation located the “prevalence” of alleged corruption and irregularities involving the NLC and its beneficiaries “offered ample motive” for exposure through the media.

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

Here's

Nevhutanda’s letter,
an affidavit by at the moment suspended NLC company secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the request, and
the security company’s “private” findings and suggestions.
Nevhutanda questioned the SSA to analyze the function of NLC personnel inside the alleged leaking of knowledge, and Nene, in her affidavit determined precise media and reports that she claimed involved these leaks.

Within the letter outlining its findings, the SSA told the NLC that when shielding condition data was “a legal imperative targeted at defending the sovereignty and integrity of the condition” this only placed on appropriately classified information.

Although it did not say so directly, the SSA conclusions implied that the allegedly leaked info didn't fall into this group.

Considerably, the SSA built it obvious that the need to defend point out data “doesn't protect against any particular person from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or criminal activity”.

The SSA investigation observed that the NLC information linked to the alleged breach was “delicate and privileged in nature, but not classified concerning the prescripts with the Minimum amount Information and facts Stability Standards (Pass up)”.

“The leakage with the relevant delicate official NLC information for the media would not pose a menace to nationwide security,” the SSA mentioned, adding the affect of the breaches was reputational.

The SSA report uncovered “no evidence of the factual and incriminating character towards any of the suspected NLC staff that might be determined from the data and information interrogated”.

What's more, it said that “the prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities in the NLC and at its beneficiaries does present sufficient motive to obtain this sort of uncovered within the media”.

Conspiracy claims
In 2020, Nevhutanda informed MPs for the duration of a session of Parliament’s trade, sector and Opposition portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” by which information and facts “stolen” from your NLC was despatched into the US, in which he claimed it had been staying sold to fund a smear campaign towards the NLC.

He was repeating equivalent statements he had previously produced in Parliament, which incorporated ad hominem attacks on GroundUp which reporter but was thorough not to name either.

“I arrived below With this August property previous year and claimed to honourable customers that information about our beneficiaries has been stolen and place in a single state in the usa,” he informed MPs.

“We identified as around the Condition Stability Agency to come check into the matter mainly because we've been getting reviews that our facts is building money for media platforms and journalists,” he stated. “There's been speak, needless to say from one particular supply, a single media, that spoke Significantly about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda stated (referring to GroundUp), but didn't notify MPs that the SSA investigation were accomplished Virtually a year previously.

Proactive funding was at the guts on the looting from the lottery. It aspect-stepped the normal grant approach. The NLC could alone discover a project to fund and appoint a non-income organisation to supervise it.

Following Nevhutanda 1st explained to Parliament in 2018 that he experienced questioned the SSA to analyze the supposed breach, the South African National Editors Forum issued a statement stating that his remarks reflected “a particularly hazardous Perspective the place the media is getting blamed to the NLC’s inherent difficulties”.

“As opposed to investigating why millions can not be accounted for, the NLC has alternatively tried to Solid doubt to the integrity from the journalists associated and has requested the SSA to analyze their sources.”

Proactive assignments produced secret
Protection flaws recognized in the NLC grant funding process through the SSA’s investigation, appear to are utilized as an justification from the NLC to get rid of all proactive-funded jobs 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 projects had been removed from the grant funding program and preserved manually beneath the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Data Office environment, Government Manager Legal to be able to safeguard [the] info,” Nene said in her affidavit.

“There was a lot of inside discussion, with lots of forwards and backwards, about what to do to plug the alleged leaks”, a resource, who was within a senior position for the NLC at time, instructed GroundUp. “Ultimately, the choice was taken to eliminate each of the proactive jobs in the process and Restrict access to a handful of folks”.

Some in that handful of men and women were implicated in corruption.

Maselwa, who resigned from the NLC quite a few decades ago, has been implicated in corruption involving lottery cash. He obtained R4.3-million from lottery resources allotted to make a library and museum elaborate in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural New music and Arts Expo) which he applied to make a house in an upmarket gated advancement in Pretoria. The house is one of a number of paid for with lottery money that were frozen after the Asset Forfeiture Device attained 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 substantial-ups from the ANC leadership, previous NLC former Commissioner Thabang Mampane, and ex-chief working officer Phillemon Letwaba, have all been implicated from 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 evidence of how he experienced profited from corrupt lottery grants, and Muthuhadini Madzivhandila, who may have considering that died.

Every time a new administration, such as the total board and executive, took in excess of in the NLC in late 2022 and early 2023, they learned a “chaotic mess” in the documentation associated with proactive funding, A great deal of which was paper-based. Vital paperwork ended up missing. Documents held for safekeeping by document storage company Metrofile were signed out and never ever returned.

The NLC was able to Recuperate copies of some หวย หุ้น ช่อง 9 files from its Mimecast e-mail archiving method and the laptops of their assistants and guidance employees.

News experiences
In his 1 December 2018 letter, resolved to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has famous with grave issue feasible facts stability breaches along with the unauthorised use and/or dissemination of confidential details received due to performing Formal functions within the Commission by NLC workers. The pursuits are intended to undermine the integrity of the Commission while disrupting the efficient capabilities [with the NLC] and resulting in insurmountable reputational harm to the Commission given that the custodian of non-public info entrusted to it by its beneficiaries.”

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

Nene is now struggling with a disciplinary inquiry right after she was unsuccessful in authorized action to set aside findings of irregular expenditure on her look at.

The objective of her affidavit, Nene claimed, was “to history the occasions which transpired referring to data safety breaches on the Countrywide Lotteries Commission”.

She detailed different news reports which she claimed were the outcomes of such “breaches” (see at the conclusion of this information).

Nene claimed that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that one among its staff members, Sello Qhino, had “provided her labeled NLC Information and facts and persistently encouraged her to supply the knowledge to GroundUp”.

Qhino, who blew the whistle over a series of dodgy lottery-funded initiatives in Kuruman right after makes an attempt to boost The problem internally have been dismissed, was subsequently fired.

Referring to an 18 November 2018 report during the Day by day Dispatch regarding the misappropriation of Lottery funds, Nene reported the NLC recognized after which suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an employee in the NLC’s East London Office environment, who was the companion and the mom of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s three young children.

Rungqu and Makatse imagine Rungqu was punished since Makatse blew the whistle. She was suspended and billed internally, While using the NLC paying out R470,000 on legal professionals to signify it, but was located not responsible and permitted to return to operate.

“The common factor in these articles or blog posts is usually that [they contain] categorised information and facts concerning proactive funding jobs,” Nene reported in her affidavit.

When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out of your family household to take the warmth off her and his youngsters. Going through homelessness, he moved into an Place of work within an empty manufacturing unit belonging to a pal.

Both equally Makatse and Qhino are participating in an NLC reparation course of action meant to recognise the harm some individuals experienced on the hands on the NLC. Apologies and, in some cases, money compensation are expected.

“Some people have been seriously impacted quite negatively by this … This is admittedly distressing,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz explained to the Daily Maverick final calendar year.

“I achieved a handful of these persons. It had been just so heart-wrenching that their total lives happen to be turned the wrong way up,” stated Scholtz.

Among the Individuals she achieved had been Qhino and Makatse.

Harmless platform wanted for whistleblowers
The SSA identified the absence at some time of a correct channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to turn to the media.

“Failure to possess a dedicated anti-corruption channel will lead to personnel presenting these types of instances outside of the NLC,” the SSA mentioned in its findings.

“Given the magnitude of corruption in point out institutions, it stays crucial that it makes certain that the NLC complies with all protection prescripts and that its aim is on guaranteeing that illegal and irregular perform is sufficiently mitigated in opposition to and by ensuring an enough channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward conduct without the need of currently being intimidated.”

It recommended that the NLC set up a “Secure channel” for employees to offer info on any “untoward activity” that could not prevent or discourage personnel from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers coverage, dependant on the Protected Disclosures Act twenty five of 2000, is really a requirement.”

Media experiences Nene listed
A ten December 2017 report from the Limpopo Mirror about corruption and maladministration involving the Lottery-funded Vhembe Health and fitness and Conditioning Centre in Limpopo. GroundUp has worked closely with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and owner with the Limpopo Mirror, to expose NLC corruption. “The article experienced components of knowledge not accessible in the general public area, thus elevating worry on interior Data security breaches. The allegations while in the media were being independently investigated,” Nene stated. “Even so, workforce liable for divulging categorized data have still to generally be discovered”;
A 28 January 2018 posting released because of the Dally Dispatch “citing various allegations with the Limpopo Mirror short article revealed on ten December 2017 and also a new allegation associated with a previous worker by the title of Mzukisi Makatse. He was charged and summarily dismissed for that risk prompted for the organisation.”
A sixteen November 2018 article while in the Lowvelder with regards to the misappropriation of NLC cash involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has noted how, Regardless of getting R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab has not been finished. “The Lowvelder report contained categorized data when it comes to NLC policy, raising additional fears of inner data safety breaches,” Nene explained in her affidavit. “The prima facie evidence with regard to these allegations didn't warrant an impartial Investigation, having said that [it] highlighted the heightened information and facts protection dangers throughout the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose a few dodgy R27.5-million grant to Denzhe Key Care, a hijacked NPO. Nene claimed GroundUp had verified in its Tale that it had been based on leaked NLC documents. This was despite the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Marketing of Use of Info) request for information in regards to the challenge, she stated

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