Lottery bosses turned to Condition Security Agency to research leaks

Lottery bosses turned to Condition Security Agency to research leaks

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Previous National Lotteries Fee (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda asked the Point out Safety Company (SSA) in December 2018 to research the leaking of files that exposed lottery corruption.
The NLC’s business secretary at enough time outlined media experiences she said were depending on “stolen” details in an affidavit with the SSA.
The SSA did look into. It discovered the information wasn't a make any difference of point out safety and which the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “ample motive” for your media to show it.
A completely new board and administration has due to the fact taken more than the NLC and thus far have taken measures to finish corruption for the institution.
A Condition Protection Agency (SSA) investigation uncovered the “prevalence” of alleged corruption and irregularities involving the NLC and its beneficiaries “supplied ample motive” for publicity with the media.

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

Here's

Nevhutanda’s letter,
an affidavit by at present suspended NLC firm secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the request, and
the security agency’s “confidential” conclusions and proposals.
Nevhutanda requested the SSA to research the job of NLC workers inside the alleged leaking of data, and Nene, in her affidavit determined particular media and reports that she claimed associated these leaks.

From the letter outlining its results, the SSA explained to the NLC that even though preserving condition details was “a legal imperative aimed toward preserving the sovereignty and integrity in the condition” this only placed on correctly classified info.

Even though it did not say so instantly, the SSA findings implied the allegedly leaked info did not tumble into this classification.

Significantly, the SSA built it clear that the need to secure condition data “will not reduce any particular person from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or criminality”.

The SSA investigation discovered the NLC facts involved with the alleged breach was “sensitive and privileged in mother nature, but not categorised when it comes to the prescripts with the Minimum Info Safety Specifications (Pass up)”.

“The leakage of the related sensitive Formal NLC data to your media doesn't pose a menace to national safety,” the SSA said, introducing the effect with the breaches was reputational.

The SSA report uncovered “no proof of a factual and incriminating nature from any of your suspected NLC personnel that might be recognized from the knowledge and info interrogated”.

What's more, it mentioned that “the prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities within the NLC and at its beneficiaries does present enough motive to own such uncovered in the media”.

Conspiracy promises
In 2020, Nevhutanda advised MPs during a session of Parliament’s trade, business and Competitiveness portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” during which details “stolen” within the NLC was despatched to your US, where he claimed it had been becoming sold to fund a smear campaign in opposition to the NLC.

He was repeating identical statements he had Earlier created in Parliament, which integrated advertisement hominem attacks on GroundUp which reporter but was very careful not to call possibly.

“I arrived right here Within this August dwelling final year and reported to honourable users that information regarding our beneficiaries has actually been stolen and put in one point out in the united states,” he instructed MPs.

“We identified as to the Condition Protection Company to come consider the matter because we're receiving experiences that our info is generating cash for media platforms and journalists,” he reported. “There's been discuss, of course from a single source, a single media, that spoke Considerably about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda said (referring to GroundUp), but failed to tell MPs that the SSA investigation had been completed Virtually a year before.

Proactive funding was at the guts on the looting in the lottery. It aspect-stepped the normal grant approach. The NLC could by itself determine a project to fund and appoint a non-financial gain organisation to oversee it.

Right after Nevhutanda initially informed Parliament in 2018 that he experienced asked the SSA to research the supposed breach, the South African National Editors Forum issued an announcement indicating that his remarks mirrored “an extremely unsafe Frame of mind where by the media is being blamed for your NLC’s inherent troubles”.

“Rather then investigating why millions can not be accounted for, the NLC has as an alternative tried to Solid question within the integrity of your journalists concerned and has questioned the SSA to analyze their sources.”

Proactive projects designed magic formula
Stability flaws identified in the NLC grant funding procedure over the SSA’s investigation, look to are already made use of being an justification by the NLC to remove all proactive-funded projects from its central grants procedure.

“In or about 21 December 2019, the classification of all Professional-actively funding tasks was heightened to ‘top secret’ and jobs ended up removed from the grant funding method and taken care of manually under the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Information Office, Govt Supervisor Legal to be able to safeguard [the] info,” Nene stated in her affidavit.

“There was a lot of inner dialogue, with lots of back and forth, about how to proceed to plug the alleged leaks”, a supply, who was in a very senior placement on the NLC at the time, informed GroundUp. “In the end, the decision was taken to get rid of the many proactive assignments with the program and Restrict usage of a handful of persons”.

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

Maselwa, who resigned from the NLC numerous decades ago, has been implicated in corruption involving lottery funds. He gained R4.3-million from lottery resources allotted to create a library and museum sophisticated in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural Audio and Arts Expo) which he employed to construct a home within an upmarket gated advancement in Pretoria. The assets is one of quite a few paid for with lottery funds which were frozen after the Asset Forfeiture Unit attained a preservation order in December 2022.

The politically-linked Nevhutanda, who was appointed as the NLC board chairperson by former President Jacob Zuma in 2009 and was close to substantial-ups while in the ANC Management, previous NLC former Commissioner Thabang Mampane, and ex-Main running officer Phillemon Letwaba, have all been implicated inside the corruption which overcome the NLC on their enjoy.

Also implicated are former board users William Huma, who resigned just after he was confronted with evidence of how he had profited from corrupt lottery grants, and Muthuhadini Madzivhandila, that has considering the fact that died.

Any time a new administration, such as the total board and govt, took about within the NLC in late 2022 and early 2023, they uncovered a “chaotic mess” in the documentation associated with proactive funding, much of which was paper-based mostly. Vital files were being lacking. Documents held for safekeeping by doc storage organization Metrofile had been signed out and never ever returned.

The NLC was able to Get better copies of some หวย ลาว ย้อน หลัง paperwork from its Mimecast email archiving method as well as the laptops of their assistants and assistance employees.

News experiences
In his 1 December 2018 letter, dealt with to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has famous with grave concern attainable info protection breaches and also the unauthorised use and/or dissemination of private details obtained due to carrying out Formal functions from the Commission by NLC workers. The functions are intended to undermine the integrity with the Fee although disrupting the effective features [on the NLC] and resulting in insurmountable reputational hurt into the Fee because the custodian of personal details entrusted to it by its beneficiaries.”

His request for your SSA to investigate was supported in an affidavit by suspended NLC organization secretary, Nomphumelelo Nene.

Nene is at this time struggling with a disciplinary inquiry after she was unsuccessful in lawful motion to set aside results of irregular expenditure on her observe.

The purpose of her affidavit, Nene reported, was “to file the occasions which transpired regarding facts protection breaches on the Countrywide Lotteries Fee”.

She detailed various news stories which she claimed were being the outcomes of these “breaches” (see at the end of this post).

Nene explained that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that one among its personnel, Sello Qhino, had “delivered her categorised NLC Facts and persistently encouraged her to supply the information to GroundUp”.

Qhino, who blew the whistle over a series of dodgy lottery-funded jobs in Kuruman following attempts to lift The problem internally had been disregarded, was subsequently fired.

Referring to an 18 November 2018 article during the Day-to-day Dispatch about the misappropriation of Lottery resources, Nene explained that the NLC determined and after that suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an personnel inside the NLC’s East London Business, who was the companion as well as the mom of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s a few kids.

Rungqu and Makatse imagine Rungqu was punished for the reason that Makatse blew the whistle. She was suspended and billed internally, with the NLC shelling out R470,000 on attorneys to characterize it, but was observed not responsible and permitted to return to work.

“The frequent factor in these articles is that [they include] categorised facts regarding proactive funding assignments,” Nene said in her affidavit.

When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out with the loved ones dwelling to take the heat off her and his kids. Experiencing homelessness, he moved into an Place of work in an empty factory belonging to an acquaintance.

Each Makatse and Qhino are participating in an NLC reparation method intended to recognise the harm many people suffered in the hands of your NLC. Apologies and, occasionally, money compensation are expected.

“Some individuals were being genuinely impacted extremely negatively by this … This is actually painful,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz explained to the Each day Maverick final year.

“I fulfilled a couple of these folks. It absolutely was just so coronary heart-wrenching that their full lives are already turned the other way up,” stated Scholtz.

Amid All those she fulfilled ended up Qhino and Makatse.

Harmless System needed for whistleblowers
The SSA discovered the absence at the time of an appropriate channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to show for the media.

“Failure to have a focused anti-corruption channel will bring about staff members presenting these types of conditions outside of the NLC,” the SSA said in its findings.

“Presented the magnitude of corruption in state institutions, it continues to be vital that it makes certain that the NLC complies with all safety prescripts and that its concentrate is on making sure that illegal and irregular carry out is sufficiently mitigated in opposition to and by making sure an satisfactory channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward carry out devoid of becoming intimidated.”

It advisable which the NLC create a “Harmless channel” for workers to offer information on any “untoward action” that will not avoid or discourage staff from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers policy, dependant on the Shielded Disclosures Act 25 of 2000, is actually a requirement.”

Media stories Nene shown
A ten December 2017 report during the Limpopo Mirror about corruption and maladministration involving the Lottery-funded Vhembe Health and fitness and Exercise Centre in Limpopo. GroundUp has labored closely with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and owner with the Limpopo Mirror, to show NLC corruption. “The posting experienced aspects of data not out there in the public area, thus elevating concern on interior Data protection breaches. The allegations in the media were independently investigated,” Nene mentioned. “Having said that, employees responsible for divulging categorized facts have still for being discovered”;
A 28 January 2018 short article released through the Dally Dispatch “citing numerous allegations within the Limpopo Mirror write-up published on 10 December 2017 along with a new allegation concerning a previous worker via the identify of Mzukisi Makatse. He was charged and summarily dismissed for your risk induced to your organisation.”
A sixteen November 2018 report from the Lowvelder regarding the misappropriation of NLC money involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has noted how, Despite obtaining R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab has not been completed. “The Lowvelder article contained labeled data regarding NLC plan, increasing even more concerns of interior facts security breaches,” Nene claimed in her affidavit. “The prima facie proof with regard to these allegations did not warrant an unbiased Investigation, having said that [it] highlighted the heightened data security hazards in the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose a few dodgy R27.five-million grant to Denzhe Main Care, a hijacked NPO. Nene mentioned GroundUp had confirmed in its story that it was depending on leaked NLC files. This was Regardless of the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Promotion of Entry to Information) ask for for details with regards to the challenge, she mentioned