Lottery bosses turned to Point out Safety Agency to research leaks

Lottery bosses turned to Point out Safety Agency to research leaks

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Previous Countrywide Lotteries Fee (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda questioned the Condition Security Company (SSA) in December 2018 to research the leaking of files that exposed lottery corruption.
The NLC’s firm secretary at the time mentioned media stories she stated ended up depending on “stolen” information and facts in an affidavit to the SSA.
The SSA did look into. It discovered the knowledge wasn't a matter of state safety and the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “sufficient motive” for that media to show it.
A brand new board and management has given that taken in excess of the NLC and To date have taken actions to end corruption at the establishment.
A Condition Security Company (SSA) investigation observed the “prevalence” of alleged corruption and irregularities involving the NLC and its beneficiaries “supplied enough motive” for exposure from the media.

The probe into meant “data security breaches and sabotage of NLC operations” was carried out soon after then-NLC board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda wrote towards the SSA in December 2018 requesting it to research.

Here's

Nevhutanda’s letter,
an affidavit by presently suspended NLC corporation secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the ask for, and
the security agency’s “confidential” results and proposals.
Nevhutanda questioned the SSA to analyze the role of NLC workers from the alleged leaking of data, and Nene, in her affidavit discovered unique media and stories that she claimed included these leaks.

From the letter outlining its results, the SSA informed the NLC that whilst defending state information was “a authorized essential aimed at shielding the sovereignty and integrity of the point out” this only placed on appropriately categorised details.

Although it did not say so directly, the SSA results implied that the allegedly leaked data did not drop into this group.

Appreciably, the SSA manufactured it clear that the need to protect point out details “doesn't avert any unique from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or criminal activity”.

The SSA investigation located that the NLC facts involved in the alleged breach was “delicate and privileged in nature, although not classified with regards to the prescripts from the Bare minimum Facts Stability Requirements (Skip)”.

“The leakage of the related sensitive Formal NLC data on the media will not pose a danger to national safety,” the SSA mentioned, incorporating the affect with the breaches was reputational.

The SSA report uncovered “no proof of a factual and incriminating nature against any of the suspected NLC employees that could be discovered from the knowledge and info interrogated”.

In addition, it stated that “the prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities in the NLC and at its beneficiaries does supply enough motive to own this kind of uncovered in the media”.

Conspiracy statements
In 2020, Nevhutanda explained to MPs for the duration of a session of Parliament’s trade, field and Competitiveness portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” in which details “stolen” through the NLC was despatched to your US, where by he claimed it absolutely was remaining bought to fund a smear marketing campaign from the NLC.

He was repeating very similar statements he had Beforehand built in Parliament, which involved advertisement hominem attacks on GroundUp which reporter but was mindful not to call both.

“I came below In this particular August home past yr and claimed to honourable associates that specifics of our beneficiaries has become stolen and set in one state in the united states,” he explained to MPs.

“We referred to as to the Point out Stability Company to come explore the issue for the reason that we've been getting reports that our info is producing cash for media platforms and journalists,” he stated. “There has been talk, of course from a person supply, a single media, that spoke A lot about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda said (referring to GroundUp), but did not tell MPs the SSA investigation were accomplished almost a 12 months before.

Proactive funding was at the heart on the looting of the lottery. It aspect-stepped the traditional grant process. The NLC could itself discover a challenge to fund and appoint a non-revenue organisation to oversee it.

Soon after Nevhutanda initially explained to Parliament in 2018 that he experienced requested the SSA to research the supposed breach, the South African National Editors Discussion board issued a press release expressing that his remarks reflected “a particularly harmful Mindset where the media is remaining blamed for that NLC’s inherent difficulties”.

“Instead of investigating why tens of millions can't be accounted for, the NLC has instead attempted to Forged doubt within the integrity of your journalists concerned and has requested the SSA to analyze their resources.”

Proactive tasks built mystery
Security flaws determined in the NLC grant funding technique during the SSA’s investigation, look to are actually employed as an justification because of the NLC to eliminate all proactive-funded initiatives from its central grants program.

“In or about 21 December 2019, the classification of all Professional-actively funding projects was heightened to ‘solution’ and projects had been faraway from the grant funding program and taken care of manually underneath the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Facts Office environment, Executive Manager Authorized to be able to safeguard [the] details,” Nene reported in her affidavit.

“There was loads of inside dialogue, with lots of forwards and backwards, about what to do to plug the alleged leaks”, a source, who was in the senior position on the NLC at enough time, informed GroundUp. “Ultimately, the choice was taken to remove every one of the proactive initiatives from the method and limit usage of a handful of men and women”.

Some in that handful of folks were implicated in corruption.

Maselwa, who resigned from your NLC many several years ago, has become implicated in corruption involving lottery cash. He obtained R4.three-million from lottery money allotted to make a library and museum complicated in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural Songs and Arts Expo) which he utilized to make a residence within an upmarket gated development in Pretoria. The house is one of various compensated for with lottery resources which were frozen following the Asset Forfeiture Device acquired a preservation purchase in December 2022.

The politically-linked Nevhutanda, who was appointed since the NLC board chairperson by former President Jacob Zuma in 2009 and was close to high-ups within the ANC Management, former NLC former Commissioner Thabang Mampane, and ex-Main working officer Phillemon Letwaba, have all been implicated within the corruption which confused the NLC on their watch.

Also implicated are previous board members William Huma, who resigned after he was confronted with proof of how he experienced profited from corrupt lottery grants, and Muthuhadini Madzivhandila, that has because died.

Every time a new administration, such as the whole board and government, took around on the NLC in late 2022 and early 2023, they found out a “chaotic mess” within the documentation associated with proactive funding, A great deal of which was paper-based. Crucial documents had been missing. Files held for safekeeping by doc storage company Metrofile were signed out and hardly ever returned.

The NLC was able to Get better copies of some ltpbet documents from its Mimecast e-mail archiving technique plus the laptops in their assistants and assist staff members.

News reviews
In his 1 December 2018 letter, dealt with to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has pointed out with grave worry achievable details security breaches as well as unauthorised use and/or dissemination of confidential information received as a result of accomplishing official capabilities within the Fee by NLC employees. The pursuits are meant to undermine the integrity from the Commission when disrupting the effective functions [on the NLC] and producing insurmountable reputational hurt towards the Commission 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 company secretary, Nomphumelelo Nene.

Nene is currently facing a disciplinary inquiry after she was unsuccessful in authorized action to put aside results of irregular expenditure on her view.

The goal of her affidavit, Nene explained, was “to document the situations which transpired regarding info protection breaches in the Nationwide Lotteries Fee”.

She outlined several information reviews which she claimed ended up the results of these “breaches” (see at the end of this text).

Nene said that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that certainly one of its personnel, Sello Qhino, had “presented her categorized NLC Details and persistently encouraged her to provide the data to GroundUp”.

Qhino, who blew the whistle over a series of dodgy lottery-funded tasks in Kuruman following tries to boost the issue internally ended up dismissed, was subsequently fired.

Referring to an eighteen November 2018 report within the Day by day Dispatch with regards to the misappropriation of Lottery funds, Nene claimed that the NLC recognized and then suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an worker from the NLC’s East London office, who was the associate as well as mom of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s a few children.

Rungqu and Makatse think Rungqu was punished due to the fact Makatse blew the whistle. She was suspended and charged internally, Together with the NLC shelling out R470,000 on attorneys to signify it, but was discovered not responsible and allowed to return to work.

“The prevalent factor in these content is that [they include] labeled facts concerning proactive funding projects,” Nene stated in her affidavit.

When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out in the household property to take the heat off her and his children. Facing homelessness, he moved into an office within an empty manufacturing unit belonging to a colleague.

The two Makatse and Qhino are taking part in an NLC reparation course of action intended to recognise the hurt a number of people experienced with the hands with the NLC. Apologies and, in some cases, fiscal payment are expected.

“Some men and women were actually influenced pretty negatively by this … This is basically agonizing,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz instructed the Day by day Maverick last year.

“I met a few these people. It was just so coronary heart-wrenching that their total life are already turned the wrong way up,” stated Scholtz.

Among Those people she fulfilled have been Qhino and Makatse.

Secure System necessary for whistleblowers
The SSA discovered the absence at some time of a correct channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to show towards the media.

“Failure to possess a focused anti-corruption channel will end in personnel presenting these kinds of conditions outside of the NLC,” the SSA reported in its findings.

“Specified the magnitude of corruption in condition institutions, it remains very important that it makes sure that the NLC complies with all protection prescripts Which its concentration is on making certain that unlawful and irregular conduct is adequately mitigated towards and by making certain an satisfactory channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward perform with out currently being intimidated.”

It proposed which the NLC establish a “Secure channel” for workers to deliver info on any “untoward activity” that may not reduce or discourage workers from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers policy, depending on the Protected Disclosures Act 25 of 2000, is often a prerequisite.”

Media reviews Nene outlined
A 10 December 2017 report within the Limpopo Mirror about corruption and maladministration involving the Lottery-funded Vhembe Health and Exercise Centre in Limpopo. GroundUp has worked carefully with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and owner of your Limpopo Mirror, to expose NLC corruption. “The short article experienced aspects of data not offered in the public area, therefore raising worry on internal Info protection breaches. The allegations during the media have been independently investigated,” Nene said. “However, staff members to blame for divulging classified information have but for being recognized”;
A 28 January 2018 report revealed by the Dally Dispatch “citing numerous allegations from the Limpopo Mirror posting released on ten December 2017 and a new allegation concerning a previous employee because of the title of Mzukisi Makatse. He was billed and summarily dismissed for that threat brought about for the organisation.”
A sixteen November 2018 short article inside the Lowvelder with regards to the misappropriation of NLC money involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has claimed how, in spite of getting R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab hasn't been finished. “The Lowvelder short article contained categorised information regarding NLC coverage, increasing additional concerns of interior info security breaches,” Nene stated in her affidavit. “The prima facie proof with regard to these allegations didn't warrant an independent Investigation, nevertheless [it] highlighted the heightened information and facts protection risks inside the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose a couple of dodgy R27.five-million grant to Denzhe Principal Treatment, a hijacked NPO. Nene mentioned GroundUp experienced verified in its Tale that it absolutely was determined by leaked NLC paperwork. This was despite the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Advertising of Usage of Info) request for particulars with regard to the challenge, she said

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