Former Countrywide Lotteries Fee (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda questioned the Condition Stability Company (SSA) in December 2018 to research the leaking of files that exposed lottery corruption.
The NLC’s organization secretary at some time detailed media experiences she claimed were based on “stolen” info in an affidavit with the SSA.
The SSA did look into. It uncovered the data was not a make a difference of state stability and the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “ample motive” with the media to reveal it.
A fresh board and administration has considering the fact that taken in excess of the NLC and thus far have taken actions to finish corruption in the establishment.
A Point out Security Agency (SSA) investigation uncovered that the “prevalence” of alleged corruption and irregularities involving the NLC and its beneficiaries “presented enough motive” for publicity from the media.

The probe into intended “facts stability breaches and sabotage of NLC functions” was carried out just after then-NLC board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda wrote to the SSA in December 2018 requesting it to investigate.

Here's

Nevhutanda’s letter,
an affidavit by at this time suspended NLC corporation secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the ask for, and
the security company’s “private” findings and proposals.
Nevhutanda requested the SSA to investigate the role of NLC team from the alleged leaking of knowledge, and Nene, in her affidavit identified distinct media and reviews that she claimed included these leaks.

Inside the letter outlining its conclusions, the SSA informed the NLC that when defending condition information was “a legal critical directed at guarding the sovereignty and integrity on the condition” this only placed on properly labeled facts.

Even though it didn't say so right, the SSA results implied that the allegedly leaked details did not tumble into this group.

Appreciably, the SSA designed it obvious that the need to protect condition details “does not reduce any particular person from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or illegal activity”.

The SSA investigation observed that the NLC facts involved in the alleged breach was “sensitive and privileged in mother nature, although not classified with regard to the prescripts of the Bare minimum Information and facts Stability Requirements (Overlook)”.

“The leakage on the applicable delicate Formal NLC facts to your media would not pose a menace to nationwide safety,” the SSA mentioned, adding which the impression on the breaches was reputational.

The SSA report identified “no proof of a factual and incriminating nature versus any on the suspected NLC workers that 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 supply sufficient motive to have these kinds of uncovered during the media”.

Conspiracy promises
In 2020, Nevhutanda told MPs for the duration of a session of Parliament’s trade, marketplace and competition portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” by which info “stolen” from your NLC was sent to the US, where by he claimed it had been currently being sold to fund a smear marketing campaign in opposition to the NLC.

He was repeating equivalent promises he had Beforehand manufactured in Parliament, which integrated advert hominem attacks on GroundUp and this reporter but was very careful not to name possibly.

“I arrived right here With this August property last calendar year and reported to honourable users that information regarding our beneficiaries has long been stolen and put in a single condition in the united states,” he told MPs.

“We called within the Condition Safety Agency to return investigate the make any difference simply because we have been acquiring stories that our facts is creating income for media platforms and journalists,” he explained. “There was discuss, of course from one source, one particular media, that spoke A lot about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda mentioned (referring to GroundUp), but did not explain to MPs the SSA investigation had been finished Practically a 12 months previously.

Proactive funding was at the center of your looting from the lottery. It facet-stepped the normal grant course of action. The NLC could alone recognize a task to fund and appoint a non-financial gain organisation to supervise it.

Following Nevhutanda very first instructed Parliament in 2018 that he experienced requested the SSA to analyze the supposed breach, the South African Nationwide Editors Forum issued an announcement stating that his remarks reflected “an incredibly perilous Mind-set the place the media is becoming blamed with the NLC’s inherent challenges”.

“As an alternative to investigating why hundreds of thousands can't be accounted for, the NLC has rather attempted to Forged doubt within the integrity of your journalists involved and has requested the SSA to research their resources.”

Proactive jobs produced mystery
Protection flaws determined during the NLC grant funding system throughout the SSA’s investigation, seem to are already utilised as an excuse by the NLC to eliminate all proactive-funded initiatives from its central grants technique.

“In or about 21 December 2019, the classification of all pro-actively funding jobs was heightened to ‘solution’ and assignments had been faraway from the grant funding method and managed manually under the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Information and facts Business office, Govt Manager Authorized so that you can safeguard [the] details,” Nene claimed in her affidavit.

“There was lots of inner dialogue, with many back and forth, about how to proceed to plug the alleged leaks”, a resource, who was in a senior place on the NLC at time, advised GroundUp. “Ultimately, the decision was taken to remove all the proactive jobs within the procedure and limit access to A few men and women”.

Some in that handful of individuals were being implicated in corruption.

Maselwa, who resigned with the NLC numerous years in the past, continues to be implicated in corruption involving lottery cash. He obtained R4.three-million from lottery resources allocated to create a library and museum complex in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural Audio and Arts Expo) which he made use of to build a property within an upmarket gated enhancement in Pretoria. The property is one of a number of paid out for with lottery money that were frozen after the Asset Forfeiture Unit obtained a preservation get in December 2022.

The politically-related Nevhutanda, who was appointed given that the NLC board chairperson by previous President Jacob Zuma in 2009 and was near to large-ups inside the ANC leadership, previous NLC former Commissioner Thabang Mampane, and ex-Main functioning officer Phillemon Letwaba, have all been implicated while in the corruption which overwhelmed the NLC on their own observe.

Also implicated are previous board associates William Huma, who resigned following he was confronted with proof of how he had profited from corrupt lottery grants, and Muthuhadini Madzivhandila, who's got given that died.

Any time a new administration, including the overall board and executive, took above within 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-dependent. Vital files were lacking. Data files held for safekeeping by doc storage corporation Metrofile were signed out and under no circumstances returned.

The NLC was in the position to Get well copies of some ตา ว จ หวย files from its Mimecast email archiving program plus the laptops in their assistants and support employees.

News reviews
In his 1 December 2018 letter, addressed to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has mentioned with grave concern possible info security breaches and the unauthorised use and/or dissemination of private facts acquired as a result of accomplishing official capabilities from the Commission by NLC workforce. The pursuits are meant to undermine the integrity in the Fee although disrupting the efficient features [of your NLC] and resulting in insurmountable reputational damage to your Fee as being the custodian of non-public details entrusted to it by its beneficiaries.”

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

Nene is currently going through a disciplinary inquiry soon after she was unsuccessful in authorized action to set aside results of irregular expenditure on her look at.

The goal of her affidavit, Nene mentioned, was “to history the functions which transpired concerning details protection breaches within the National Lotteries Commission”.

She detailed several information experiences which she claimed were being the results of such “breaches” (see at the conclusion of this short article).

Nene stated that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that among its staff, Sello Qhino, experienced “delivered her labeled NLC Details and persistently inspired her to offer the information to GroundUp”.

Qhino, who blew the whistle over a series of dodgy lottery-funded initiatives in Kuruman soon after tries to raise The problem internally were dismissed, was subsequently fired.

Referring to an eighteen November 2018 post from the Every day Dispatch with regards to the misappropriation of Lottery resources, Nene said that the NLC recognized and afterwards suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an staff in the NLC’s East London Workplace, who was the companion as well as the mother of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s a few small children.

Rungqu and Makatse believe that Rungqu was punished for the reason that Makatse blew the whistle. She was suspended and charged internally, With all the NLC spending R470,000 on legal professionals to symbolize it, but was found not responsible and permitted to return to work.

“The popular factor in these article content is always that [they contain] classified data relating to proactive funding tasks,” Nene claimed in her affidavit.

When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out of the loved ones property to take the heat off her and his young children. Experiencing homelessness, he moved into an Office environment within an empty factory belonging to a friend.

Both of those Makatse and Qhino are taking part in an NLC reparation approach intended to recognise the hurt a lot of people endured at the palms of the NLC. Apologies and, sometimes, monetary compensation are envisioned.

“Some folks were being truly impacted pretty negatively by this … This is actually unpleasant,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz instructed the Day by day Maverick last year.

“I met a number of these men and women. It had been just so heart-wrenching that their complete life are turned upside down,” claimed Scholtz.

Amongst Those people she met ended up Qhino and Makatse.

Safe platform wanted for whistleblowers
The SSA discovered the absence at time of a suitable channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to show into the media.

“Failure to possess a dedicated anti-corruption channel will result in staff presenting these kinds of scenarios beyond the NLC,” the SSA claimed in its results.

“Presented the magnitude of corruption in condition institutions, it continues to be important that it makes sure that the NLC complies with all security prescripts Which its emphasis is on making certain that unlawful and irregular conduct is sufficiently mitigated in opposition to and by ensuring an enough channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward conduct without the need of getting intimidated.”

It recommended the NLC create a “Secure channel” for employees to offer info on any “untoward activity” that might not protect against or discourage employees from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers policy, determined by the Secured Disclosures Act twenty five of 2000, is usually a need.”

Media reports Nene outlined
A ten December 2017 report in the Limpopo Mirror about corruption and maladministration involving the Lottery-funded Vhembe Well being and Health and fitness Centre in Limpopo. GroundUp has labored carefully with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and owner of the Limpopo Mirror, to show NLC corruption. “The report had things of information not available in the general public area, therefore boosting problem on interior Details stability breaches. The allegations while in the media were being independently investigated,” Nene mentioned. “Having said that, staff chargeable for divulging classified details have still to generally be identified”;
A 28 January 2018 post printed through the Dally Dispatch “citing quite a few allegations through the Limpopo Mirror report revealed on 10 December 2017 along with a new allegation relating to a previous worker through the identify of Mzukisi Makatse. He was charged and summarily dismissed for your danger induced towards the organisation.”
A sixteen November 2018 write-up during the Lowvelder with regards to the misappropriation of NLC funds involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has described how, in spite of getting R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab has not been done. “The Lowvelder write-up contained labeled information and facts with regards to NLC coverage, increasing further more concerns of internal info security breaches,” Nene stated in her affidavit. “The prima facie evidence with regard to these allegations didn't warrant an impartial Investigation, even so [it] highlighted the heightened data safety dangers throughout the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose a few dodgy R27.5-million grant to Denzhe Primary Treatment, a hijacked NPO. Nene stated GroundUp experienced confirmed in its Tale that it was dependant on leaked NLC documents. This was Regardless of the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Promotion of Entry to Information) request for aspects in regards to the challenge, she mentioned