Lottery bosses turned to Point out Security Agency to investigate leaks

Lottery bosses turned to Point out Security Agency to investigate leaks

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Previous National Lotteries Commission (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda requested the Condition Safety Agency (SSA) in December 2018 to investigate the leaking of documents that uncovered lottery corruption.
The NLC’s organization secretary at the time listed media experiences she explained have been based upon “stolen” data within an affidavit for that SSA.
The SSA did investigate. It observed the data was not a make any difference of condition stability and that the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “enough motive” with the media to show it.
A brand new board and administration has considering the fact that taken in excess of the NLC and So far have taken measures to finish corruption with the institution.
A Condition Security Company (SSA) investigation uncovered which the “prevalence” of alleged corruption and irregularities involving the NLC and its beneficiaries “provided ample motive” for publicity with the media.

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

Here is

Nevhutanda’s letter,
an affidavit by at this time suspended NLC enterprise secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the ask for, and
the security company’s “private” conclusions and proposals.
Nevhutanda asked the SSA to analyze the role of NLC personnel during the alleged leaking of data, and Nene, in her affidavit determined distinct media and reviews that she claimed included these leaks.

Within the letter outlining its findings, the SSA informed the NLC that while defending point out data was “a lawful crucial targeted at shielding the sovereignty and integrity on the condition” this only placed on appropriately categorised info.

Although it didn't say so straight, the SSA conclusions implied the allegedly leaked details did not slide into this group.

Appreciably, the SSA manufactured it very clear that the need to protect point out details “will not avert any specific from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or illegal activity”.

The SSA investigation observed which the NLC info involved in the alleged breach was “sensitive and privileged in nature, although not categorised with regards to the prescripts on the Minimum Facts Protection Criteria (Miss out on)”.

“The leakage in the applicable sensitive official NLC info to your media does not pose a risk to nationwide security,” the SSA said, including that the affect from the breaches was reputational.

The SSA report observed “no evidence of the factual and incriminating nature from any with the suspected NLC workforce that can be recognized from the knowledge and knowledge interrogated”.

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

Conspiracy claims
In 2020, Nevhutanda instructed MPs through a session of Parliament’s trade, sector and Levels of competition portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” by which information and facts “stolen” with the NLC was despatched to your US, exactly where he claimed it had been remaining sold to fund a smear marketing campaign from the NLC.

He was repeating equivalent statements he experienced Beforehand manufactured in Parliament, which involved ad hominem attacks on GroundUp which reporter but was careful not to call either.

“I arrived below On this August property previous year and described to honourable users that details about our beneficiaries has become stolen and place in one point out in the usa,” he advised MPs.

“We named within the Point out Protection Company to return check into the make a difference for the reason that we're having studies that our facts is generating income for media platforms and journalists,” he mentioned. “There has been communicate, naturally from one particular supply, just one media, that spoke A lot about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda claimed (referring to GroundUp), but did not convey to MPs that the SSA investigation had been finished Nearly a year before.

Proactive funding was at the guts of the looting of your lottery. It aspect-stepped the traditional grant approach. The NLC could alone identify a venture to fund and appoint a non-revenue organisation to oversee it.

Soon after Nevhutanda to start with informed Parliament in 2018 that he had questioned the SSA to research the supposed breach, the South African National Editors Forum issued a statement expressing that his remarks reflected “an incredibly unsafe attitude in which the media is remaining blamed with the NLC’s inherent troubles”.

“Rather than investigating why tens of millions cannot be accounted for, the NLC has in its place tried to cast doubt over the integrity from the journalists associated and has asked the SSA to analyze their sources.”

Proactive initiatives made top secret
Protection flaws discovered while in the NLC grant funding program throughout the SSA’s investigation, show up to are utilized being an excuse by the NLC to get rid of all proactive-funded assignments from its central grants system.

“In or about 21 December 2019, the classification of all Professional-actively funding projects was heightened to ‘top secret’ and initiatives had been faraway from the grant funding procedure and preserved manually under the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Info Workplace, Executive Supervisor Legal so that you can safeguard [the] information and facts,” Nene claimed in her affidavit.

“There was a lot of inner discussion, with many backwards and forwards, about what to do to plug the alleged leaks”, a resource, who was within a senior posture at the NLC at the time, informed GroundUp. “Ultimately, the choice was taken to get rid of many of the proactive projects in the system and Restrict usage of A few people”.

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

Maselwa, who resigned with the NLC various several years ago, has actually been implicated in corruption involving lottery money. He been given R4.3-million from lottery cash allotted to create a library and museum complex in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural Songs and Arts Expo) which he applied to construct a property within an upmarket gated improvement in Pretoria. The house is one of various compensated for with lottery resources which were frozen after the Asset Forfeiture Unit obtained a preservation order in December 2022.

The politically-connected Nevhutanda, who was appointed because the NLC board chairperson by former President Jacob Zuma in 2009 and was near superior-ups in the ANC Management, previous NLC former Commissioner Thabang Mampane, and ex-Main running officer Phillemon Letwaba, have all been implicated while in the corruption which overcome the NLC on their observe.

Also implicated are former board members William Huma, who resigned following he was confronted with proof of how he had profited from corrupt lottery grants, and Muthuhadini Madzivhandila, who may have considering the fact that died.

Every time a new administration, including the overall board and government, took over within the NLC in late 2022 and early 2023, they identified a “chaotic mess” in the documentation referring to proactive funding, Substantially of which was paper-based. Crucial paperwork ended up missing. Information held for safekeeping by document storage firm Metrofile were signed out and in no way returned.

The NLC was in the position to Get better copies of some ltpbet files from its Mimecast electronic mail archiving system and also the laptops of their assistants and assistance personnel.

News reviews
In his 1 December 2018 letter, addressed to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has noted with grave problem achievable details security breaches and the unauthorised use and/or dissemination of confidential details obtained on account of carrying out Formal features within the Fee by NLC employees. The activities are meant to undermine the integrity on the Fee although disrupting the effective features [of your NLC] and causing insurmountable reputational damage into the Commission because the custodian of non-public data entrusted to it by its beneficiaries.”

His request to the SSA to research was supported in an affidavit by suspended NLC firm secretary, Nomphumelelo Nene.

Nene is at the moment experiencing a disciplinary inquiry immediately after she was unsuccessful in authorized action to put aside results of irregular expenditure on her check out.

The objective of her affidavit, Nene claimed, was “to report the activities which transpired relating to information and facts safety breaches in the Nationwide Lotteries Fee”.

She mentioned a variety of information reviews which she claimed have been the final results of such “breaches” (see at the conclusion of this short article).

Nene said that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that among its staff, Sello Qhino, had “supplied her categorized NLC Data and persistently encouraged her to supply the knowledge to GroundUp”.

Qhino, who blew the whistle on a series of dodgy lottery-funded initiatives in Kuruman after tries to raise The problem internally had been disregarded, was subsequently fired.

Referring to an eighteen November 2018 post while in the Day by day Dispatch concerning the misappropriation of Lottery money, Nene stated which the NLC determined after which you can suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an worker during the NLC’s East London Place of work, who was the husband or wife along with the mother of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s a few young children.

Rungqu and Makatse imagine Rungqu was punished simply because Makatse blew the whistle. She was suspended and charged internally, With all the NLC shelling out R470,000 on attorneys to signify it, but was observed not responsible and permitted to return to work.

“The widespread Think about these article content is usually that [they involve] categorised information and facts regarding proactive funding assignments,” Nene claimed in her affidavit.

When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out with the household household to take the heat off her and his kids. Facing homelessness, he moved into an Place of work in an empty factory belonging to a colleague.

Both of those Makatse and Qhino are taking part in an NLC reparation approach intended to recognise the harm a lot of people experienced at the hands on the NLC. Apologies and, sometimes, money compensation are predicted.

“Some individuals were actually affected incredibly negatively by this … This is absolutely painful,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz instructed the Every day Maverick previous 12 months.

“I met two or three these folks. It absolutely was just so coronary heart-wrenching that their complete life are already turned the other way up,” mentioned Scholtz.

Among the Those people she fulfilled had been Qhino and Makatse.

Risk-free platform necessary for whistleblowers
The SSA located the absence at time of a correct channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to turn for the media.

“Failure to have a devoted anti-corruption channel will cause workers presenting these scenarios outside of the NLC,” the SSA claimed in its results.

“Offered the magnitude of corruption in condition institutions, it continues to be critical that it ensures that the NLC complies with all protection prescripts Which its emphasis is on ensuring that illegal and irregular perform is sufficiently mitigated in opposition to and by making sure an satisfactory channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward perform with out remaining intimidated.”

It advised the NLC build a “safe channel” for workers to deliver info on any “untoward exercise” that would not avoid or discourage personnel from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers coverage, determined by the Safeguarded Disclosures Act twenty five of 2000, is a need.”

Media stories Nene shown
A ten December 2017 report while in the Limpopo Mirror about corruption and maladministration involving the Lottery-funded Vhembe Wellness and Fitness Centre in Limpopo. GroundUp has worked carefully with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and proprietor of the Limpopo Mirror, to reveal NLC corruption. “The short article experienced components of knowledge not accessible in the public domain, thus raising problem on interior Details protection breaches. The allegations from the media ended up independently investigated,” Nene reported. “Nevertheless, workers to blame for divulging labeled data have nevertheless for being identified”;
A 28 January 2018 short article printed via the Dally Dispatch “citing quite a few allegations in the Limpopo Mirror posting revealed on ten December 2017 plus a new allegation referring to a previous staff through the identify of Mzukisi Makatse. He was charged and summarily dismissed to the menace brought on on the organisation.”
A 16 November 2018 short article during the Lowvelder with regard to the misappropriation of NLC resources involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has reported how, Despite receiving R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab hasn't been concluded. “The Lowvelder report contained categorized information concerning NLC policy, boosting even more issues of inside information safety breaches,” Nene said in her affidavit. “The prima facie evidence regarding these allegations did not warrant an unbiased Investigation, even so [it] highlighted the heightened info protection risks inside the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose a couple of dodgy R27.five-million grant to Denzhe Primary Care, a hijacked NPO. Nene claimed GroundUp experienced verified in its Tale that it absolutely was based on leaked NLC files. This was Regardless of the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Marketing of Entry to Data) request for information with regard to the challenge, she claimed