Lottery bosses turned to Condition Safety Company to analyze leaks

Lottery bosses turned to Condition Safety Company to analyze leaks

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Previous Countrywide Lotteries Commission (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda requested the Condition Security Agency (SSA) in December 2018 to analyze the leaking of documents that uncovered lottery corruption.
The NLC’s organization secretary at time outlined media reports she reported ended up determined by “stolen” info in an affidavit to the SSA.
The SSA did examine. It located the information was not a issue of point out safety and the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “ample motive” for that media to reveal it.
A new board and management has since taken about the NLC and So far have taken actions to finish corruption in the institution.
A Condition Security Company (SSA) investigation discovered the “prevalence” of alleged corruption and irregularities involving the NLC and its beneficiaries “furnished enough motive” for publicity through the media.

The probe into intended “data safety breaches and sabotage of NLC operations” was undertaken following then-NLC board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda wrote to the SSA in December 2018 requesting it to research.

Here is

Nevhutanda’s letter,
an affidavit by at the moment suspended NLC firm secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the request, and
the security agency’s “confidential” results and proposals.
Nevhutanda asked the SSA to research the job of NLC staff members in the alleged leaking of information, and Nene, in her affidavit recognized unique media and reports that she claimed involved these leaks.

Within the letter outlining its results, the SSA instructed the NLC that even though shielding state information was “a authorized very important directed at shielding the sovereignty and integrity in the point out” this only applied to correctly categorized info.

Even though it did not say so straight, the SSA conclusions implied the allegedly leaked details didn't tumble into this category.

Considerably, the SSA manufactured it distinct that the need to secure state info “isn't going to protect against any personal from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or illegal activity”.

The SSA investigation located the NLC details involved in the alleged breach was “delicate and privileged in character, but not categorised concerning the prescripts of your Bare minimum Information and facts Safety Criteria (MISS)”.

“The leakage on the pertinent sensitive official NLC data to the media doesn't pose a danger to national security,” the SSA mentioned, adding the effect of the breaches was reputational.

The SSA report discovered “no evidence of the factual and incriminating nature towards any of the suspected NLC staff that can be recognized from the data and data interrogated”.

What's more, it stated that “the prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities inside the NLC and at its beneficiaries does supply sufficient motive to have these kinds of exposed in the media”.

Conspiracy statements
In 2020, Nevhutanda advised MPs all through a session of Parliament’s trade, marketplace and Levels of competition portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” during which details “stolen” in the NLC was despatched to the US, wherever he claimed it absolutely was remaining bought to fund a smear marketing campaign in opposition to the NLC.

He was repeating related statements he had Beforehand built in Parliament, which bundled advertisement hominem assaults on GroundUp and this reporter but was mindful not to name both.

“I came here During this August property last calendar year and documented to honourable members that specifics of our beneficiaries has become stolen and place in a single condition in the united states,” he explained to MPs.

“We known as within the Condition Security Company to come back consider the make any difference due to the fact we've been acquiring experiences that our information and facts is generating money for media platforms and journalists,” he stated. “There has been talk, of course from one resource, a person media, that spoke Significantly about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda stated (referring to GroundUp), but didn't explain to MPs that the SSA investigation were concluded Practically a year previously.

Proactive funding was at the guts with the looting of the lottery. It facet-stepped the conventional grant method. The NLC could alone discover a undertaking to fund and appoint a non-earnings organisation to oversee it.

Soon after Nevhutanda initial informed Parliament in 2018 that he had questioned the SSA to investigate the meant breach, the South African Nationwide Editors Discussion board issued a press release indicating that his remarks mirrored “a particularly unsafe Mind-set where the media is currently being blamed with the NLC’s inherent issues”.

“As an alternative to investigating why thousands and thousands can't be accounted for, the NLC has as an alternative tried to Solid question about the integrity in the journalists associated and has requested the SSA to analyze their resources.”

Proactive assignments built mystery
Stability flaws identified while in the NLC grant funding procedure throughout the SSA’s investigation, look to are applied being an justification by the NLC to get rid of all proactive-funded assignments from its central grants process.

“In or about 21 December 2019, the classification of all Professional-actively funding jobs was heightened to ‘key’ and assignments were removed from the grant funding system and managed manually beneath the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Facts Office environment, Government Supervisor Legal to be able to safeguard [the] information and facts,” Nene mentioned in her affidavit.

“There was loads of internal discussion, with a great deal of forwards and backwards, about what to do to plug the alleged leaks”, a source, who was in the senior position with the NLC at enough time, told GroundUp. “Ultimately, the decision was taken to get rid of every one of the proactive jobs within the procedure and limit entry to A few men and women”.

Some in that handful of individuals have been implicated in corruption.

Maselwa, who resigned from your NLC a number of many years ago, is implicated in corruption involving lottery funds. He gained R4.3-million from lottery cash allocated to build a library and museum elaborate in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural Tunes and Arts Expo) which he applied to develop a residence in an upmarket gated development in Pretoria. The assets is one of numerous compensated for with lottery resources which were frozen after the Asset Forfeiture Device received a preservation buy in December 2022.

The politically-related Nevhutanda, who was appointed given that the NLC board chairperson by former President Jacob Zuma in 2009 and was close to high-ups within the ANC leadership, previous NLC previous Commissioner Thabang Mampane, and ex-chief functioning officer Phillemon Letwaba, have all been implicated in the corruption which confused the NLC on their own check out.

Also implicated are previous board members William Huma, who resigned immediately after he was confronted with proof of how he experienced profited from corrupt lottery grants, and Muthuhadini Madzivhandila, who's got considering the fact that died.

Every time a new administration, including the entire board and government, took over for the NLC in late 2022 and early 2023, they identified a “chaotic mess” in the documentation associated with proactive funding, Significantly of which was paper-dependent. Critical paperwork ended up missing. Documents held for safekeeping by doc storage business Metrofile had been signed out and under no circumstances returned.

The NLC was ready to recover copies of some ตรวจ หวย ลาว วัน นี้ documents from its Mimecast e mail archiving method and the laptops of their assistants and assistance staff members.

Information experiences
In his 1 December 2018 letter, resolved to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has pointed out with grave issue feasible details safety breaches plus the unauthorised use and/or dissemination of confidential data acquired as a result of performing Formal features in the Commission by NLC workers. The activities are meant to undermine the integrity of the Commission even though disrupting the effective features [of your NLC] and leading to insurmountable reputational damage to the Fee because the custodian of personal info entrusted to it by its beneficiaries.”

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

Nene is at present dealing with a disciplinary inquiry soon after she was unsuccessful in authorized motion to put aside findings of irregular expenditure on her observe.

The purpose of her affidavit, Nene said, was “to history the situations which transpired relating to information and facts safety breaches at the Nationwide Lotteries Fee”.

She detailed numerous news experiences which she claimed had been the final results of such “breaches” (see at the conclusion of this text).

Nene stated that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that one among its workforce, Sello Qhino, experienced “provided her classified NLC Details and persistently encouraged her to supply the information to GroundUp”.

Qhino, who blew the whistle with a number of dodgy lottery-funded assignments in Kuruman right after attempts to lift The difficulty internally were being overlooked, was subsequently fired.

Referring to an 18 November 2018 posting from the Each day Dispatch regarding the misappropriation of Lottery resources, Nene mentioned which the NLC recognized and after that suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an personnel in the NLC’s East London Office environment, who was the partner as well as the mom of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s a few children.

Rungqu and Makatse imagine Rungqu was punished because Makatse blew the whistle. She was suspended and billed internally, With all the NLC expending R470,000 on legal professionals to symbolize it, but was located not guilty and allowed to return to operate.

“The typical factor in these content articles is always that [they entail] classified information and facts regarding proactive funding assignments,” Nene reported in her affidavit.

When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out in the family residence to take the heat off her and his children. Going through homelessness, he moved into an office within an vacant manufacturing unit belonging to a friend.

The two Makatse and Qhino are participating in an NLC reparation approach intended to recognise the harm a number of people experienced for the arms with the NLC. Apologies and, sometimes, money compensation are envisioned.

“Some persons have been truly affected extremely negatively by this … This is basically painful,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz explained to the Everyday Maverick past yr.

“I achieved a number of these people today. It was just so heart-wrenching that their complete lives have been turned upside down,” mentioned Scholtz.

Among the These she achieved had been Qhino and Makatse.

Risk-free System desired for whistleblowers
The SSA discovered the absence at the time of a proper channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to turn to the media.

“Failure to have a focused anti-corruption channel will end in employees presenting this kind of instances beyond the NLC,” the SSA claimed in its results.

“Supplied the magnitude of corruption in state establishments, it continues to be vital that it makes certain that the NLC complies with all security prescripts and that its concentration is on ensuring that illegal and irregular carry out is sufficiently mitigated against and by making certain an enough channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward perform with out currently being intimidated.”

It encouraged the NLC create a “Harmless channel” for workers to supply information on any “untoward exercise” that may not protect against or discourage staff members from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers coverage, based upon the Safeguarded Disclosures Act 25 of 2000, is usually a prerequisite.”

Media reviews Nene listed
A 10 December 2017 report 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 intently with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and owner on the Limpopo Mirror, to show NLC corruption. “The write-up had features of information not out there in the general public area, thus raising concern on internal Info safety breaches. The allegations during the media were independently investigated,” Nene stated. “Even so, staff members to blame for divulging categorized info have yet to generally be discovered”;
A 28 January 2018 report published because of the Dally Dispatch “citing quite a few allegations in the Limpopo Mirror report printed on ten December 2017 as well as a new allegation relating to a former worker with the title of Mzukisi Makatse. He was charged and summarily dismissed to the menace brought about into the organisation.”
A sixteen November 2018 posting during the Lowvelder regarding the misappropriation of NLC cash involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has documented how, in spite of receiving R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab has not been finished. “The Lowvelder article contained categorised data with regards to NLC plan, increasing additional fears of inner information safety breaches,” Nene reported in her affidavit. “The prima facie evidence regarding these allegations did not warrant an impartial Investigation, however [it] highlighted the heightened details protection challenges throughout the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose a few dodgy R27.five-million grant to Denzhe Most important Treatment, a hijacked NPO. Nene reported GroundUp experienced verified in its Tale that it had been based upon leaked NLC paperwork. This was despite the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Advertising of Usage of Facts) request for details concerning the undertaking, she mentioned