Lottery bosses turned to State Security Agency to investigate leaks

Lottery bosses turned to State Security Agency to investigate leaks

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Previous National Lotteries Commission (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda questioned the Point out Security Agency (SSA) in December 2018 to investigate the leaking of documents that exposed lottery corruption.
The NLC’s corporation secretary at enough time stated media reports she said were depending on “stolen” data in an affidavit with the SSA.
The SSA did look into. It located the information wasn't a issue of state protection and that the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “sufficient motive” for the media to reveal it.
A fresh board and administration has considering that taken over the NLC and To this point have taken steps to finish corruption in the institution.
A Condition Protection Company (SSA) investigation uncovered that the “prevalence” of alleged corruption and irregularities involving the NLC and its beneficiaries “offered sufficient motive” for exposure with the media.

The probe into intended “info stability 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 investigate.

Here's

Nevhutanda’s letter,
an affidavit by at the moment suspended NLC business secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the request, and
the security agency’s “confidential” findings and recommendations.
Nevhutanda asked the SSA to investigate the job of NLC personnel within the alleged leaking of knowledge, and Nene, in her affidavit identified certain media and stories that she claimed associated these leaks.

While in the letter outlining its results, the SSA advised the NLC that while shielding point out information was “a lawful very important targeted at preserving the sovereignty and integrity on the condition” this only placed on properly categorized facts.

Even though it did not say so instantly, the SSA conclusions implied which the allegedly leaked data didn't drop into this class.

Drastically, the SSA produced it crystal clear that the necessity to protect state facts “would not reduce any individual from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or criminality”.

The SSA investigation identified which the NLC info involved with the alleged breach was “delicate and privileged in nature, but not labeled with regards to the prescripts of your Minimal Data Protection Standards (Skip)”.

“The leakage in the appropriate sensitive official NLC info for the media isn't going to pose a risk to national security,” the SSA said, introducing the influence of the breaches was reputational.

The SSA report found “no proof of a factual and incriminating character towards any of your suspected NLC workforce that would be recognized from the data and information interrogated”.

It also stated that “the prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities in the NLC and at its beneficiaries does provide ample motive to own these types of uncovered within the media”.

Conspiracy claims
In 2020, Nevhutanda advised MPs all through a session of Parliament’s trade, field and Competitors portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” through which data “stolen” through the NLC was sent to the US, where by he claimed it absolutely was currently being sold to fund a smear marketing campaign in opposition to the NLC.

He was repeating comparable promises he had Earlier produced in Parliament, which included advertisement hominem assaults on GroundUp and this reporter but was watchful not to call either.

“I came in this article On this August dwelling final 12 months and claimed to honourable members that details about our beneficiaries has actually been stolen and set in a single point out in the usa,” he explained to MPs.

“We termed on the Point out Stability Agency to come consider the make a difference simply because we are having stories that our data is producing revenue for media platforms and journalists,” he claimed. “There's been talk, not surprisingly from a single resource, a single media, that spoke A great deal about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda mentioned (referring to GroundUp), but did not convey to MPs which the SSA investigation had been finished Just about a calendar year before.

Proactive funding was at the guts of the looting from the lottery. It side-stepped the normal grant method. The NLC could itself determine a undertaking to fund and appoint a non-earnings organisation to supervise it.

After Nevhutanda to start with informed Parliament in 2018 that he experienced asked the SSA to investigate the supposed breach, the South African Nationwide Editors Forum issued an announcement indicating that his remarks reflected “a very risky Mind-set where by the media is remaining blamed to the NLC’s inherent troubles”.

“As opposed to investigating why hundreds of thousands cannot be accounted for, the NLC has rather tried to Forged doubt to the integrity with the journalists included and has questioned the SSA to analyze their resources.”

Proactive tasks made solution
Security flaws discovered during the NLC grant funding program throughout the SSA’s investigation, look to are used being an justification via the NLC to remove all proactive-funded initiatives from its central grants process.

“In or about 21 December 2019, the classification of all pro-actively funding projects was heightened to ‘solution’ and initiatives had been removed from the grant funding program and preserved manually under the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Info Business office, Government Supervisor Lawful in order to safeguard [the] details,” Nene mentioned in her affidavit.

“There was plenty of inner dialogue, with many forwards and backwards, about what to do to plug the alleged leaks”, a source, who was in a senior posture for the NLC at the time, explained to GroundUp. “In the long run, the choice was taken to get rid of all the proactive assignments in the process and Restrict entry to A few people”.

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

Maselwa, who resigned from the NLC numerous yrs ago, is implicated in corruption involving lottery money. He acquired R4.3-million from lottery money allocated to construct a library and museum complicated in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural Songs and Arts Expo) which he utilized to construct a home within an upmarket gated progress in Pretoria. The house is one of quite a few paid out for with lottery funds which were frozen after the Asset Forfeiture Device obtained a preservation buy in December 2022.

The politically-connected Nevhutanda, who was appointed as being 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 overcome the NLC on their enjoy.

Also implicated are previous board members William Huma, who resigned right after he was confronted with evidence of how he had profited from corrupt lottery grants, and Muthuhadini Madzivhandila, that has due to the fact died.

Every time a new administration, such as the total board and government, took in excess of with the NLC in late 2022 and early 2023, they uncovered a “chaotic mess” while in the documentation associated with proactive funding, Significantly of which was paper-primarily based. Key paperwork had been lacking. Information held for safekeeping by doc storage business Metrofile were signed out and in no way returned.

The NLC was able to Recuperate copies of some ผล หวย documents from its Mimecast email archiving process along with the laptops of their assistants and guidance workers.

Information reviews
In his one December 2018 letter, addressed to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has famous with grave issue achievable information and facts safety breaches along with the unauthorised use and/or dissemination of private information obtained because of undertaking Formal features from the Fee by NLC workforce. The activities are meant to undermine the integrity of your Fee when disrupting the productive features [in the NLC] and creating insurmountable reputational harm to your Commission as the custodian of private data entrusted to it by its beneficiaries.”

His ask for to the SSA to investigate was supported in an affidavit by suspended NLC company secretary, Nomphumelelo Nene.

Nene is at this time dealing with a disciplinary inquiry just after she was unsuccessful in legal action to set aside results of irregular expenditure on her watch.

The purpose of her affidavit, Nene explained, was “to history the occasions which transpired associated with facts stability breaches within the Countrywide Lotteries Fee”.

She stated many information studies which she claimed have been the outcome of these “breaches” (see at the conclusion of this article).

Nene reported that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that considered one of its personnel, Sello Qhino, had “delivered her categorized NLC Information and persistently encouraged her to deliver the information to GroundUp”.

Qhino, who blew the whistle over a number of dodgy lottery-funded tasks in Kuruman just after attempts to boost The problem internally were being ignored, was subsequently fired.

Referring to an 18 November 2018 report during the Every day Dispatch in regards to the misappropriation of Lottery cash, Nene claimed which the NLC determined after which you can suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an staff from the NLC’s East London Office environment, who was the lover plus the mother of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s a few little ones.

Rungqu and Makatse feel Rungqu was punished simply because Makatse blew the whistle. She was suspended and billed internally, Together with the NLC investing R470,000 on legal professionals to signify it, but was uncovered not guilty and allowed to return to work.

“The popular factor in these articles or blog posts is that [they include] classified details referring to proactive funding tasks,” Nene claimed in her affidavit.

When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out of your family members household to go ahead and take warmth off her and his youngsters. Struggling with homelessness, he moved into an Workplace in an empty manufacturing unit belonging to a pal.

Both Makatse and Qhino are participating in an NLC reparation course of action meant to recognise the harm lots of people endured with the fingers on the NLC. Apologies and, sometimes, money payment are predicted.

“Some men and women had been seriously impacted extremely negatively by this … This is basically painful,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz informed the Day by day Maverick last yr.

“I achieved a few these men and women. It had been just so heart-wrenching that their entire lives have already been turned the other way up,” mentioned Scholtz.

Between Those people she achieved were being Qhino and Makatse.

Harmless System wanted for whistleblowers
The SSA observed the absence at time of an appropriate channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to turn to the media.

“Failure to possess a dedicated anti-corruption channel will end in staff presenting such scenarios beyond the NLC,” the SSA mentioned in its results.

“Specified the magnitude of corruption in point out institutions, it remains important that it makes certain that the NLC complies with all stability prescripts and that its concentrate is on making certain that illegal and irregular carry out is sufficiently mitigated against and by making certain an ample channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward carry out with no staying intimidated.”

It recommended which the NLC create a “Risk-free channel” for employees to offer information on any “untoward exercise” that might not avoid or discourage employees from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers coverage, depending on the Shielded Disclosures Act 25 of 2000, is usually a requirement.”

Media studies Nene mentioned
A 10 December 2017 report while in the Limpopo Mirror about corruption and maladministration involving the Lottery-funded Vhembe Health and Physical fitness Centre in Limpopo. GroundUp has worked carefully with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and proprietor with the Limpopo Mirror, to show NLC corruption. “The posting experienced elements of data not available in the general public area, thereby raising concern on internal Info security breaches. The allegations within the media were independently investigated,” Nene claimed. “Even so, workers responsible for divulging labeled information have still to become determined”;
A 28 January 2018 posting printed with the Dally Dispatch “citing various allegations in the Limpopo Mirror write-up released on ten December 2017 and also a new allegation concerning a previous personnel with the title of Mzukisi Makatse. He was charged and summarily dismissed for the danger prompted to your organisation.”
A 16 November 2018 post in the Lowvelder concerning the misappropriation of NLC resources involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has documented how, in spite of obtaining R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab hasn't been accomplished. “The Lowvelder article contained categorized information regarding NLC plan, raising even more fears of internal details protection breaches,” Nene claimed in her affidavit. “The prima facie proof with regards to these allegations didn't warrant an impartial Investigation, having said that [it] highlighted the heightened information stability threats throughout the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose a few dodgy R27.5-million grant to Denzhe Major Treatment, a hijacked NPO. Nene reported GroundUp experienced confirmed in its Tale that it had been according to leaked NLC files. This was despite the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Advertising of Use of Info) ask for for specifics concerning the challenge, she mentioned