Lottery bosses turned to Condition Protection Company to analyze leaks

Lottery bosses turned to Condition Protection Company to analyze leaks

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Former Countrywide Lotteries Commission (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda questioned the Point out Security Agency (SSA) in December 2018 to research the leaking of files that uncovered lottery corruption.
The NLC’s organization secretary at enough time stated media experiences she stated had been based upon “stolen” information and facts within an affidavit for that SSA.
The SSA did examine. It identified the information wasn't a subject of condition security and the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “ample motive” for the media to reveal it.
A whole new board and administration has considering the fact that taken in excess of the NLC and So far have taken actions to finish corruption on the establishment.
A Point out Security Agency (SSA) investigation observed that the “prevalence” of alleged corruption and irregularities involving the NLC and its beneficiaries “offered sufficient motive” for exposure with the media.

The probe into intended “details security breaches and sabotage of NLC functions” was undertaken soon after then-NLC board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda wrote towards the SSA in December 2018 requesting it to analyze.

Here's

Nevhutanda’s letter,
an affidavit by at present suspended NLC business secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the ask for, and
the safety company’s “private” findings and suggestions.
Nevhutanda asked the SSA to investigate the role of NLC team within the alleged leaking of data, and Nene, in her affidavit discovered distinct media and experiences that she claimed involved these leaks.

In the letter outlining its results, the SSA informed the NLC that even though shielding point out information and facts was “a authorized essential geared toward guarding the sovereignty and integrity from the point out” this only applied to properly categorised information.

Even though it didn't say so right, the SSA conclusions implied which the allegedly leaked info didn't fall into this category.

Drastically, the SSA created it distinct that the need to safeguard state information and facts “doesn't avert any specific from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or criminal activity”.

The SSA investigation located that the NLC facts associated with the alleged breach was “delicate and privileged in nature, but not categorised in terms of the prescripts with the Minimum Facts Security Specifications (MISS)”.

“The leakage on the relevant sensitive official NLC details to your media doesn't pose a threat to national security,” the SSA said, introducing which the affect in the breaches was reputational.

The SSA report discovered “no proof of a factual and incriminating mother nature from any of your suspected NLC personnel which could be determined from the data and knowledge interrogated”.

In addition, it mentioned that “the prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities within the NLC and at its beneficiaries does give enough motive to possess these types of uncovered within the media”.

Conspiracy statements
In 2020, Nevhutanda advised MPs all through a session of Parliament’s trade, industry and Competitiveness portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” where information and facts “stolen” within the NLC was despatched on the US, the place he claimed it was becoming bought to fund a smear campaign against the NLC.

He was repeating identical statements he experienced Earlier produced in Parliament, which bundled advertisement hominem assaults on GroundUp and this reporter but was watchful not to call either.

“I came in this article In this particular August house final 12 months and claimed to honourable members that information regarding our beneficiaries has long been stolen and put in one point out in America,” he told MPs.

“We referred to as about the Condition Security Agency to come investigate the make any difference simply because we are obtaining reviews that our data is making income for media platforms and journalists,” he explained. “There's been discuss, needless to say from a single source, a person media, that spoke Substantially about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda explained (referring to GroundUp), but failed to notify MPs that the SSA investigation were finished Pretty much a yr before.

Proactive funding was at the heart with the looting of the lottery. It aspect-stepped the traditional grant process. The NLC could by itself establish a project to fund and appoint a non-earnings organisation to oversee it.

Soon after Nevhutanda 1st explained to Parliament in 2018 that he had requested the SSA to analyze the intended breach, the South African National Editors Forum issued an announcement stating that his remarks mirrored “a very hazardous Frame of mind in which the media is currently being blamed to the NLC’s inherent issues”.

“Rather then investigating why hundreds of thousands can't be accounted for, the NLC has rather made an effort to cast doubt over the integrity from the journalists involved and has questioned the SSA to investigate their sources.”

Proactive tasks designed key
Safety flaws discovered while in the NLC grant funding process over the SSA’s investigation, appear to happen to be made use of being an excuse through the NLC to remove all proactive-funded projects from its central grants system.

“In or about 21 December 2019, the classification of all Professional-actively funding assignments was heightened to ‘key’ and projects had been removed from the grant funding system and taken care of manually beneath the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Information Workplace, Executive Manager Lawful in order to safeguard [the] information and facts,” Nene claimed in her affidavit.

“There was a lot of interior dialogue, with a lot of backwards and forwards, about how to proceed to plug the alleged leaks”, a source, who was in a very senior posture at the NLC at time, explained to GroundUp. “Ultimately, the decision was taken to remove all the proactive projects from your system and Restrict use of a handful of individuals”.

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

Maselwa, who resigned in the NLC various decades ago, has become implicated in corruption involving lottery cash. He gained R4.three-million from lottery cash allocated to create a library and museum advanced in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural New music and Arts Expo) which he made use of to develop a household in an upmarket gated advancement in Pretoria. The property is among many paid for with lottery resources that were frozen once the Asset Forfeiture Unit attained a preservation purchase in December 2022.

The politically-related Nevhutanda, who was appointed as being the NLC board chairperson by previous President Jacob Zuma in 2009 and was near to superior-ups while in the ANC Management, former NLC former Commissioner Thabang Mampane, and ex-chief functioning officer Phillemon Letwaba, have all been implicated within the corruption which overcome the NLC on their own check out.

Also implicated are previous board members William Huma, who resigned right after he was confronted with evidence of how he had profited from corrupt lottery grants, and Muthuhadini Madzivhandila, who's got since died.

When a new administration, including the entire board and executive, took over at the NLC in late 2022 and early 2023, they discovered a “chaotic mess” in the documentation concerning proactive funding, Substantially of which was paper-based mostly. Crucial files have been missing. Documents held for safekeeping by document storage corporation Metrofile had been signed out and hardly ever returned.

The NLC was capable to recover copies of some หวย ลาว ล่าสุด documents from its Mimecast electronic mail archiving process plus the laptops in their assistants and assist employees.

Information reviews
In his one December 2018 letter, addressed to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has observed with grave concern attainable info protection breaches and the unauthorised use and/or dissemination of confidential data attained as a result of executing official features while in the Fee by NLC staff members. The things to do are meant to undermine the integrity of your Fee when disrupting the productive features [on the NLC] and triggering insurmountable reputational harm to the Fee since the custodian of personal information and facts entrusted to it by its beneficiaries.”

His ask for for the SSA to analyze was supported in an affidavit by suspended NLC enterprise secretary, Nomphumelelo Nene.

Nene is at the moment struggling with a disciplinary inquiry after she was unsuccessful in lawful motion to set aside findings of irregular expenditure on her watch.

The purpose of her affidavit, Nene reported, was “to history the gatherings which transpired associated with details security breaches for the Nationwide Lotteries Fee”.

She detailed various news reports which she claimed ended up the outcomes of those “breaches” (see at the conclusion of this text).

Nene said that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that one among its employees, Sello Qhino, had “offered her labeled NLC Information and facts and persistently inspired her to deliver the data to GroundUp”.

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

Referring to an 18 November 2018 post within the Daily Dispatch about the misappropriation of Lottery resources, Nene explained that the NLC determined then suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an worker during the NLC’s East London Office environment, who was the lover along with the mom of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s three kids.

Rungqu and Makatse believe Rungqu was punished mainly because Makatse blew the whistle. She was suspended and billed internally, While using the NLC expending R470,000 on legal professionals to represent it, but was observed not responsible and allowed to return to operate.

“The frequent Think about these article content is always that [they include] categorised facts referring to proactive funding initiatives,” Nene mentioned in her affidavit.

When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out on the spouse and children dwelling to go ahead and take warmth off her and his small children. Facing homelessness, he moved into an Workplace within an vacant manufacturing facility belonging to a friend.

Each Makatse and Qhino are participating in an NLC reparation method meant to recognise the hurt some people suffered within the palms in the NLC. Apologies and, occasionally, economical compensation are envisioned.

“Some folks have been definitely influenced very negatively by this … This is actually agonizing,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz explained to the Everyday Maverick very last calendar year.

“I achieved a couple of these individuals. It absolutely was just so coronary heart-wrenching that their entire lives have already been turned the wrong way up,” explained Scholtz.

Amid People she fulfilled were being Qhino and Makatse.

Protected System wanted for whistleblowers
The SSA found the absence at time of a correct channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to turn to your media.

“Failure to possess a devoted anti-corruption channel will lead to workforce presenting these circumstances outside of the NLC,” the SSA claimed in its results.

“Specified the magnitude of corruption in state establishments, it remains critical that it ensures that the NLC complies with all security prescripts Which its concentrate is on guaranteeing that unlawful and irregular conduct is adequately mitigated versus and by ensuring an enough channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward perform with out currently being intimidated.”

It encouraged the NLC set up a “safe channel” for workers to deliver information on any “untoward activity” that may not reduce or discourage staff members from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers coverage, depending on the Shielded Disclosures Act 25 of 2000, is a prerequisite.”

Media reports Nene shown
A ten December 2017 report inside the Limpopo Mirror about corruption and maladministration involving the Lottery-funded Vhembe Health and Exercise Centre in Limpopo. GroundUp has labored closely with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and proprietor from the Limpopo Mirror, to reveal NLC corruption. “The post had things of data not offered in the public domain, thereby raising issue on interior Information and facts stability breaches. The allegations in the media were being independently investigated,” Nene claimed. “On the other hand, personnel answerable for divulging classified data have however to generally be recognized”;
A 28 January 2018 posting printed by the Dally Dispatch “citing several allegations within the Limpopo Mirror post released on ten December 2017 in addition to a new allegation referring to a former worker with the title of Mzukisi Makatse. He was billed and summarily dismissed for the threat brought on towards the organisation.”
A 16 November 2018 article in the Lowvelder in regards to the misappropriation of NLC money involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has reported how, Despite getting R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab has never been finished. “The Lowvelder post contained categorised data when it comes to NLC coverage, boosting additional problems of internal details protection breaches,” Nene reported in her affidavit. “The prima facie proof with regard to these allegations did not warrant an independent Investigation, nonetheless [it] highlighted the heightened data protection 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 confirmed in its story that it absolutely was based upon leaked NLC paperwork. This was despite the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Marketing of Access to Information) request for particulars about the job, she mentioned