Lottery bosses turned to State Protection Company to analyze leaks

Lottery bosses turned to State Protection Company to analyze leaks

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Previous National Lotteries Fee (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda requested the Point out Safety Company (SSA) in December 2018 to analyze the leaking of files that exposed lottery corruption.
The NLC’s business secretary at some time shown media reviews she reported ended up dependant on “stolen” details in an affidavit for the SSA.
The SSA did investigate. It observed the data was not a matter of condition stability and which the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “enough motive” for that media to show it.
A new board and administration has because taken about the NLC and So far have taken actions to finish corruption within the institution.
A State Safety Agency (SSA) investigation located which the “prevalence” of alleged corruption and irregularities involving the NLC and its beneficiaries “provided ample motive” for exposure from the media.

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

Here is

Nevhutanda’s letter,
an affidavit by currently suspended NLC enterprise secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the ask for, and
the security company’s “private” results and recommendations.
Nevhutanda requested the SSA to investigate the purpose of NLC workers in the alleged leaking of knowledge, and Nene, in her affidavit discovered certain media and experiences that she claimed involved these leaks.

While in the letter outlining its conclusions, the SSA told the NLC that although preserving point out info was “a legal essential targeted at shielding the sovereignty and integrity of your point out” this only placed on appropriately classified info.

Even though it didn't say so right, the SSA findings implied which the allegedly leaked facts did not tumble into this class.

Substantially, the SSA made it crystal clear that the need to secure state information and facts “isn't going to prevent any specific from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or illegal activity”.

The SSA investigation identified which the NLC information associated with the alleged breach was “sensitive and privileged in character, although not labeled in terms of the prescripts from the Minimal Data Protection Criteria (Miss out on)”.

“The leakage with the applicable delicate official NLC info to the media does not pose a menace to nationwide security,” the SSA claimed, including which the affect from the breaches was reputational.

The SSA report uncovered “no evidence of the factual and incriminating nature in opposition to any of the suspected NLC personnel that may be recognized from the data and data interrogated”.

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

Conspiracy claims
In 2020, Nevhutanda told MPs throughout a session of Parliament’s trade, business and Opposition portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” during which details “stolen” in the NLC was despatched for the US, exactly where he claimed it absolutely was getting sold to fund a smear campaign versus the NLC.

He was repeating related promises he had Earlier made in Parliament, which provided advert hominem assaults on GroundUp and this reporter but was mindful not to call possibly.

“I arrived here In this particular August household past 12 months and claimed to honourable users that specifics of our beneficiaries has become stolen and place in one condition in America,” he advised MPs.

“We known as over the Condition Stability Company to return look into the make a difference for the reason that we are receiving studies that our data is creating dollars for media platforms and journalists,” he claimed. “There's been communicate, certainly from just one resource, 1 media, that spoke Substantially about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda said (referring to GroundUp), but failed to inform MPs the SSA investigation had been accomplished Just about a 12 months previously.

Proactive funding was at the center on the looting on the lottery. It aspect-stepped the normal grant procedure. The NLC could alone detect a job to fund and appoint a non-financial gain organisation to oversee it.

After Nevhutanda to start with instructed Parliament in 2018 that he had requested the SSA to investigate the intended breach, the South African National Editors Forum issued a press release stating that his remarks mirrored “a particularly risky Mindset wherever the media is becoming blamed to the NLC’s inherent complications”.

“As opposed to investigating why thousands and thousands can't be accounted for, the NLC has in its place made an effort to Forged question about the integrity with the journalists included and has asked the SSA to analyze their resources.”

Proactive assignments produced magic formula
Stability flaws determined inside the NLC grant funding method during the SSA’s investigation, surface to are already utilized being an justification through the NLC to eliminate all proactive-funded tasks from its central grants process.

“In or about 21 December 2019, the classification of all pro-actively funding tasks was heightened to ‘solution’ and projects have been removed from the grant funding process and managed manually underneath the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Info Place of work, Government Manager Legal to be able to safeguard [the] info,” Nene mentioned in her affidavit.

“There was lots of internal dialogue, with a great deal of backwards and forwards, about what to do to plug the alleged leaks”, a supply, who was within a senior position within the NLC at time, told GroundUp. “In the long run, the decision was taken to get rid of all the proactive initiatives from the process and Restrict access to a handful of persons”.

Some in that handful of people had been implicated in corruption.

Maselwa, who resigned through the NLC quite a few many years ago, is implicated in corruption involving lottery money. He acquired R4.3-million from lottery money allocated to build a library and museum complicated in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural Songs and Arts Expo) which he utilized to build a dwelling within an upmarket gated advancement in Pretoria. The property is among many paid for with lottery cash that were frozen following the Asset Forfeiture Device received a preservation order in December 2022.

The politically-linked Nevhutanda, who was appointed given that the NLC board chairperson by former President Jacob Zuma in 2009 and was near to high-ups from the ANC Management, former NLC former Commissioner Thabang Mampane, and ex-chief running officer Phillemon Letwaba, have all been implicated in the corruption which overwhelmed the NLC on their look at.

Also implicated are previous board customers William Huma, who resigned just after he was confronted with proof of how he experienced profited from corrupt lottery grants, and Muthuhadini Madzivhandila, who may have since died.

Each time a new administration, such as the whole board and government, took about at the NLC in late 2022 and early 2023, they identified a “chaotic mess” from the documentation relating to proactive funding, Significantly of which was paper-based mostly. Critical paperwork ended up lacking. Information held for safekeeping by document storage business Metrofile were signed out and never returned.

The NLC was able to Get better copies of some lottovip files from its Mimecast electronic mail archiving system as well as the laptops of their assistants and help personnel.

News studies
In his 1 December 2018 letter, addressed to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has noted with grave issue probable information and facts protection breaches along with the unauthorised use and/or dissemination of confidential information received because of performing Formal functions from the Commission by NLC staff members. The routines are meant to undermine the integrity in the Fee while disrupting the powerful capabilities [from the NLC] and resulting in insurmountable reputational hurt towards the Commission as being the custodian of private information entrusted to it by its beneficiaries.”

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

Nene is at present going through a disciplinary inquiry immediately after she was unsuccessful in authorized action to set aside findings of irregular expenditure on her watch.

The purpose of her affidavit, Nene claimed, was “to file the events which transpired relating to information security breaches at the Countrywide Lotteries Commission”.

She mentioned numerous news studies which she claimed have been the final results of those “breaches” (see at the end of this short article).

Nene reported that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that certainly one of its workers, Sello Qhino, had “offered her classified NLC Facts and persistently encouraged her to deliver the knowledge to GroundUp”.

Qhino, who blew the whistle with a series of dodgy lottery-funded jobs in Kuruman immediately after attempts to boost the issue internally were ignored, was subsequently fired.

Referring to an 18 November 2018 report in the Everyday Dispatch about the misappropriation of Lottery money, Nene claimed which the NLC discovered and after that suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an employee within the NLC’s East London Place of work, who was the associate plus the mother of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s a few little ones.

Rungqu and Makatse imagine Rungqu was punished since Makatse blew the whistle. She was suspended and billed internally, Along with the NLC paying R470,000 on legal professionals to symbolize it, but was uncovered not guilty and allowed to return to operate.

“The common Consider these article content is [they contain] classified details regarding proactive funding jobs,” Nene reported in her affidavit.

When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out of the family members residence to take the warmth off her and his small children. Facing homelessness, he moved into an office within an empty manufacturing unit belonging to a colleague.

Equally Makatse and Qhino are participating in an NLC reparation procedure meant to recognise the harm lots of people endured at the fingers of the NLC. Apologies and, in some instances, financial compensation are predicted.

“Some individuals have been seriously afflicted extremely negatively by this … This is de facto distressing,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz explained to the Every day Maverick final yr.

“I satisfied a number of these men and women. It had been just so heart-wrenching that their whole life are turned the wrong way up,” mentioned Scholtz.

Amongst those she achieved have been Qhino and Makatse.

Protected System essential for whistleblowers
The SSA discovered the absence at enough time of a proper channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to show to the media.

“Failure to have a focused anti-corruption channel will lead to staff members presenting this kind of scenarios beyond the NLC,” the SSA said in its findings.

“Presented the magnitude of corruption in condition establishments, it stays very important that it makes certain that the NLC complies with all stability prescripts Which its aim is on making sure that unlawful and irregular carry out is adequately mitigated against and by making sure an suitable channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward carry out with no getting intimidated.”

It suggested which the NLC set up a “Secure channel” for employees to supply information on any “untoward action” that may not prevent or discourage staff from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers coverage, based upon the Shielded Disclosures Act twenty five of 2000, is a requirement.”

Media reports Nene listed
A ten December 2017 report during the Limpopo Mirror about corruption and maladministration involving the Lottery-funded Vhembe Health and Conditioning Centre in Limpopo. GroundUp has labored closely with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and operator on the Limpopo Mirror, to expose NLC corruption. “The article experienced components of data not offered in the public domain, thus raising worry on interior Data stability breaches. The allegations inside the media were being independently investigated,” Nene stated. “On the other hand, employees answerable for divulging labeled information and facts have however for being recognized”;
A 28 January 2018 report released because of the Dally Dispatch “citing various allegations within the Limpopo Mirror posting posted on ten December 2017 as well as a new allegation referring to a previous personnel through the identify of Mzukisi Makatse. He was charged and summarily dismissed for the menace triggered to the organisation.”
A 16 November 2018 article from the Lowvelder regarding the misappropriation of NLC resources involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has noted how, Regardless of obtaining R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab hasn't been finished. “The Lowvelder report contained categorised information with regards to NLC coverage, increasing even further fears of interior information and facts stability breaches,” Nene reported in her affidavit. “The prima facie proof regarding these allegations did not warrant an independent Investigation, even so [it] highlighted the heightened facts protection threats throughout the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose a couple of dodgy R27.5-million grant to Denzhe Major Treatment, a hijacked NPO. Nene explained GroundUp had verified in its story that it had been according to leaked NLC files. This was despite the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Marketing of Access to Data) ask for for specifics about the task, she reported