Lottery bosses turned to Point out Protection Company to analyze leaks

Lottery bosses turned to Point out Protection Company to analyze leaks

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Previous Countrywide Lotteries Commission (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda requested the Condition Stability Company (SSA) in December 2018 to analyze the leaking of files that uncovered lottery corruption.
The NLC’s company secretary at the time listed media reviews she stated had been determined by “stolen” data in an affidavit with the SSA.
The SSA did examine. It identified the information wasn't a make a difference of point out safety and which the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “ample motive” for that media to expose it.
A completely new board and management has since taken in excess of the NLC and Up to now have taken measures to end corruption with the establishment.
A Point out Stability Company (SSA) investigation found that the “prevalence” of alleged corruption and irregularities involving the NLC and its beneficiaries “presented sufficient motive” for exposure through the media.

The probe into intended “details safety breaches and sabotage of NLC operations” was carried out just 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 present suspended NLC business secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the ask for, and
the security company’s “confidential” conclusions and recommendations.
Nevhutanda questioned the SSA to investigate the job of NLC personnel within the alleged leaking of knowledge, and Nene, in her affidavit identified distinct media and experiences that she claimed concerned these leaks.

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

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

Substantially, the SSA made it apparent that the need to secure condition info “will not avoid any personal from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or criminal activity”.

The SSA investigation identified which the NLC details involved with the alleged breach was “delicate and privileged in nature, but not categorised regarding the prescripts with the Minimum amount Information and facts Safety Specifications (Miss out on)”.

“The leakage of the pertinent sensitive official NLC details into the media doesn't pose a risk to nationwide stability,” the SSA stated, incorporating which the influence in the breaches was reputational.

The SSA report located “no evidence of the factual and incriminating nature towards any on the suspected NLC workers that might be recognized from the information and information interrogated”.

What's more, it stated that “the prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities within the NLC and at its beneficiaries does give sufficient motive to possess these kinds of uncovered inside the media”.

Conspiracy promises
In 2020, Nevhutanda explained to MPs all through a session of Parliament’s trade, field and Competitors portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” where information and facts “stolen” within the NLC was sent for the US, exactly where he claimed it absolutely was currently being sold to fund a smear campaign against the NLC.

He was repeating identical claims he experienced Beforehand created in Parliament, which bundled ad hominem attacks on GroundUp which reporter but was very careful not to name either.

“I came below in this August residence previous 12 months and claimed to honourable users that specifics of our beneficiaries is stolen and put in a single point out in the usa,” he instructed MPs.

“We identified as about the Condition Security Company to come back consider the matter because we have been obtaining experiences that our data is producing revenue for media platforms and journalists,” he explained. “There have been discuss, certainly from a single resource, one media, that spoke Significantly about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda claimed (referring to GroundUp), but didn't tell MPs that the SSA investigation had been finished Practically a 12 months previously.

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

Following Nevhutanda first explained to Parliament in 2018 that he had questioned the SSA to research the meant breach, the South African National Editors Discussion board issued a statement declaring that his remarks mirrored “an especially perilous Perspective where by the media is becoming blamed for that NLC’s inherent problems”.

“As an alternative to investigating why thousands and thousands can not be accounted for, the NLC has instead tried to Forged question over the integrity of your journalists associated and it has requested the SSA to investigate their resources.”

Proactive jobs built solution
Protection flaws recognized in the NLC grant funding procedure over the SSA’s investigation, look to happen to be made use of as an justification from the NLC to get rid of all proactive-funded projects from its central grants technique.

“In or about 21 December 2019, the classification of all Professional-actively funding tasks was heightened to ‘mystery’ and jobs had been removed from the grant funding process and managed manually underneath the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Info Business office, Government Manager Authorized in an effort to safeguard [the] data,” Nene claimed in her affidavit.

“There was many inside discussion, with lots of forwards and backwards, about how to proceed to plug the alleged leaks”, a source, who was in a senior situation with the NLC at the time, instructed GroundUp. “Ultimately, the choice was taken to remove the many proactive assignments within the method and limit access to a handful of people today”.

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

Maselwa, who resigned within the NLC a number of years in the past, has become implicated in corruption involving lottery resources. He obtained R4.3-million from lottery cash allotted to make a library and museum complicated in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural Tunes and Arts Expo) which he made use of to build a residence in an upmarket gated progress in Pretoria. The property is among a number of compensated for with lottery money that were frozen after the Asset Forfeiture Unit obtained 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 higher-ups while in the ANC leadership, previous NLC former Commissioner Thabang Mampane, and ex-Main running officer Phillemon Letwaba, have all been implicated inside the corruption which confused the NLC on their check out.

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

Whenever a new administration, such as the full board and government, took in excess of for the NLC in late 2022 and early 2023, they learned a “chaotic mess” within the documentation regarding proactive funding, A lot of which was paper-based mostly. Essential paperwork ended up lacking. Information held for safekeeping by doc storage firm Metrofile had been signed out and hardly ever returned.

The NLC was in the position to recover copies of some ruay paperwork from its Mimecast email archiving procedure as well as laptops of their assistants and aid personnel.

News studies
In his one December 2018 letter, tackled to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has pointed out with grave problem probable details protection breaches and also the unauthorised use and/or dissemination of confidential facts attained as a result of executing official features from the Fee by NLC workforce. The things to do are meant to undermine the integrity of your Fee when disrupting the productive features [in the NLC] and leading to insurmountable reputational harm to the Fee since the custodian of personal information and facts entrusted to it by its beneficiaries.”

His request for the SSA to analyze was supported in an affidavit by suspended NLC corporation secretary, Nomphumelelo Nene.

Nene is at present facing a disciplinary inquiry soon after she was unsuccessful in lawful action to set aside results of irregular expenditure on her watch.

The purpose of her affidavit, Nene claimed, was “to record the activities which transpired regarding information and facts security breaches in the National Lotteries Commission”.

She outlined numerous news reports which she claimed were the outcomes of such “breaches” (see at the conclusion of this information).

Nene claimed that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that considered one of its personnel, Sello Qhino, had “furnished her categorized NLC Information and persistently inspired her to provide the knowledge to GroundUp”.

Qhino, who blew the whistle with a series of dodgy lottery-funded initiatives in Kuruman following makes an attempt to lift the issue internally have been disregarded, was subsequently fired.

Referring to an eighteen November 2018 post while in the Day by day Dispatch regarding the misappropriation of Lottery money, Nene explained the NLC determined and afterwards suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an staff from the NLC’s East London Business, who was the husband or wife as well as mom of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s three children.

Rungqu and Makatse consider Rungqu was punished mainly because Makatse blew the whistle. She was suspended and charged internally, with the NLC expending R470,000 on lawyers to stand for it, but was identified not responsible and permitted to return to work.

“The widespread Think about these content articles is usually that [they include] labeled information and facts relating to proactive funding assignments,” Nene explained in her affidavit.

When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out with the family house to go ahead and take warmth off her and his small children. Struggling with homelessness, he moved into an Business within an empty manufacturing unit belonging to a colleague.

Equally Makatse and Qhino are participating in an NLC reparation process meant to recognise the harm lots of people experienced with the arms on the NLC. Apologies and, in some cases, fiscal payment are anticipated.

“Some people today had been seriously afflicted really negatively by this … This is de facto distressing,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz told the Everyday Maverick last calendar year.

“I satisfied a few these individuals. It had been just so coronary heart-wrenching that their total life are turned upside down,” claimed Scholtz.

Amongst Those people she satisfied ended up Qhino and Makatse.

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

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

“Provided the magnitude of corruption in state establishments, it continues to be critical that it makes sure that the NLC complies with all security prescripts Which its emphasis is on ensuring 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 currently being intimidated.”

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

Media experiences Nene listed
A ten December 2017 report during the Limpopo Mirror about corruption and maladministration involving the Lottery-funded Vhembe Health and Fitness Centre in Limpopo. GroundUp has labored carefully with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and operator of your Limpopo Mirror, to reveal NLC corruption. “The post experienced aspects of information not out there in the public area, thereby increasing concern on inner Information protection breaches. The allegations in the media have been independently investigated,” Nene said. “Even so, workforce liable for divulging labeled information and facts have however to get determined”;
A 28 January 2018 short article posted via the Dally Dispatch “citing numerous allegations from the Limpopo Mirror article published on ten December 2017 and also a new allegation regarding a former staff because of the title of Mzukisi Makatse. He was billed and summarily dismissed for that risk caused to your organisation.”
A 16 November 2018 short article inside the Lowvelder concerning the misappropriation of NLC cash involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has reported how, Regardless of obtaining R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab hasn't been finished. “The Lowvelder short article contained categorised info regarding NLC plan, boosting further issues of internal info safety breaches,” Nene mentioned in her affidavit. “The prima facie evidence with regards to these allegations did not warrant an independent Investigation, nevertheless [it] highlighted the heightened data stability dangers within the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose about a dodgy R27.five-million grant to Denzhe Most important Treatment, a hijacked NPO. Nene claimed GroundUp had confirmed in its Tale that it had been determined by leaked NLC paperwork. This was Regardless of the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Marketing of Entry to Information) ask for for specifics regarding the project, she claimed