Lottery bosses turned to Condition Stability Company to analyze leaks

Lottery bosses turned to Condition Stability Company to analyze leaks

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Former National Lotteries Commission (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda requested the State Safety Agency (SSA) in December 2018 to investigate the leaking of documents that exposed lottery corruption.
The NLC’s enterprise secretary at some time outlined media experiences she mentioned have been based on “stolen” data within an affidavit to the SSA.
The SSA did look into. It identified the data wasn't a make any difference of point out stability and which the “prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities” gave “enough motive” for the media to show it.
A completely new board and management has considering that taken about the NLC and To this point have taken actions to end corruption for the institution.
A Point out Protection Company (SSA) investigation uncovered which the “prevalence” of alleged corruption and irregularities involving the NLC and its beneficiaries “presented enough motive” for publicity because of the media.

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

Here's

Nevhutanda’s letter,
an affidavit by now suspended NLC company secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the ask for, and
the security company’s “private” results and proposals.
Nevhutanda requested the SSA to analyze the job of NLC team during the alleged leaking of data, and Nene, in her affidavit recognized particular media and experiences that she claimed associated these leaks.

While in the letter outlining its findings, the SSA informed the NLC that whilst defending condition information was “a authorized essential directed at protecting the sovereignty and integrity in the condition” this only applied to properly categorised information.

Even though it didn't say so right, the SSA findings implied which the allegedly leaked info did not fall into this class.

Substantially, the SSA manufactured it obvious that the need to protect point out information and facts “won't protect against any personal from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or illegal activity”.

The SSA investigation uncovered the NLC details linked to the alleged breach was “delicate and privileged in character, but not labeled regarding the prescripts on the Minimum Information Security Benchmarks (Skip)”.

“The leakage on the related delicate official NLC data to the media won't pose a menace to countrywide safety,” the SSA said, adding which the influence of your breaches was reputational.

The SSA report discovered “no proof of the factual and incriminating mother nature against any with the suspected NLC workers that could be recognized from the information and data interrogated”.

What's more, it stated that “the prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities within the NLC and at its beneficiaries does provide enough motive to possess these kinds of exposed during the media”.

Conspiracy promises
In 2020, Nevhutanda explained to MPs in the course of a session of Parliament’s trade, sector and Competitors portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” where info “stolen” with the NLC was despatched to the US, the place he claimed it was being marketed to fund a smear marketing campaign in opposition to the NLC.

He was repeating comparable statements he experienced Earlier designed in Parliament, which integrated advertisement hominem attacks on GroundUp and this reporter but was very careful not to call possibly.

“I arrived below Within this August residence very last year and claimed to honourable users that information regarding our beneficiaries has become stolen and place in a single condition in the usa,” he instructed MPs.

“We termed over the Point out Stability Agency to come consider the issue mainly because we're getting studies that our facts is producing revenue for media platforms and journalists,” he explained. “There have been chat, obviously from just one resource, 1 media, that spoke Substantially about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda mentioned (referring to GroundUp), but failed to explain to MPs the SSA investigation had been finished Virtually a 12 months previously.

Proactive funding was at the guts from the looting in the lottery. It aspect-stepped the traditional grant course of action. The NLC could by itself recognize a undertaking to fund and appoint a non-income organisation to oversee it.

Just after Nevhutanda initially instructed Parliament in 2018 that he experienced asked the SSA to investigate the meant breach, the South African Countrywide Editors Forum issued a statement indicating that his remarks reflected “a very risky Mind-set in which the media is getting blamed for the NLC’s inherent problems”.

“Instead of investigating why hundreds of thousands cannot be accounted for, the NLC has alternatively attempted to Forged question on the integrity of the journalists included and it has requested the SSA to research their resources.”

Proactive projects manufactured key
Protection flaws identified in the NLC grant funding process in the SSA’s investigation, look to have already been utilized being an justification from the NLC to eliminate 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 ‘mystery’ and assignments had been faraway from the grant funding system and taken care of manually under the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Details Place of work, Govt Supervisor Legal as a way to safeguard [the] data,” Nene explained in her affidavit.

“There was lots of internal discussion, with a lot of back and forth, about how to proceed to plug the alleged leaks”, a resource, who was in the senior position at the NLC at time, told GroundUp. “Eventually, the choice was taken to remove each of the proactive initiatives from the method and limit entry to a handful of individuals”.

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

Maselwa, who resigned within the NLC several many years ago, has been implicated in corruption involving lottery resources. He gained R4.three-million from lottery money allocated to create a library and museum advanced in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural Music and Arts Expo) which he made use of to construct a house within an upmarket gated progress in Pretoria. The property is among many paid for with lottery resources that were frozen following the Asset Forfeiture Unit obtained a preservation purchase in December 2022.

The politically-related Nevhutanda, who was appointed since the NLC board chairperson by previous President Jacob Zuma in 2009 and was near higher-ups from the ANC Management, former NLC former Commissioner Thabang Mampane, and ex-Main functioning officer Phillemon Letwaba, have all been implicated in the corruption which overwhelmed the NLC on their observe.

Also implicated are former board associates William Huma, who resigned soon after he was confronted with evidence of how he experienced profited from corrupt lottery grants, and Muthuhadini Madzivhandila, who's got since died.

When a new administration, including the whole board and govt, took above within the NLC in late 2022 and early 2023, they learned a “chaotic mess” within the documentation concerning proactive funding, Considerably of which was paper-centered. Essential paperwork ended up lacking. Data files held for safekeeping by document storage corporation Metrofile were signed out and never returned.

The NLC was in a position to Recuperate copies of some หวย ลาว ล่าสุด files from its Mimecast e mail archiving procedure and also the laptops in their assistants and support staff.

Information stories
In his 1 December 2018 letter, dealt with to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has observed with grave problem attainable details protection breaches and also the unauthorised use and/or dissemination of confidential information obtained on account of performing Formal capabilities during the Commission by NLC staff members. The pursuits are meant to undermine the integrity from the Fee even though disrupting the successful capabilities [from the NLC] and producing insurmountable reputational harm to the Commission as the custodian of non-public information entrusted to it by its beneficiaries.”

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

Nene is now experiencing a disciplinary inquiry immediately after she was unsuccessful in legal motion to set aside results of irregular expenditure on her observe.

The purpose of her affidavit, Nene said, was “to file the occasions which transpired regarding data security breaches on the National Lotteries Commission”.

She stated numerous news stories which she claimed had been the effects of such “breaches” (see at the end of this article).

Nene said that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that one among its personnel, Sello Qhino, experienced “delivered her categorised NLC Info and persistently inspired her to deliver the knowledge to GroundUp”.

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

Referring to an 18 November 2018 post within the Every day Dispatch regarding the misappropriation of Lottery resources, Nene stated the NLC identified after which you can suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an worker from the NLC’s East London Place of work, who was the spouse plus the mom of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s 3 young children.

Rungqu and Makatse believe that Rungqu was punished simply because Makatse blew the whistle. She was suspended and charged internally, Together with the NLC expending R470,000 on attorneys to symbolize it, but was identified not responsible and permitted to return to work.

“The widespread Consider these article content is usually that [they require] labeled details referring to proactive funding initiatives,” Nene stated in her affidavit.

When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out with the loved ones home to take the heat off her and his small children. Going through homelessness, he moved into an Office environment within an vacant manufacturing unit belonging to a pal.

Both equally Makatse and Qhino are taking part in an NLC reparation procedure intended to recognise the damage lots of people experienced for the palms on the NLC. Apologies and, in some cases, monetary compensation are envisioned.

“Some people today were being genuinely impacted very negatively by this … This is actually distressing,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz explained to the Day-to-day Maverick last yr.

“I fulfilled a number of these persons. It was just so heart-wrenching that their entire life happen to be turned the wrong way up,” reported Scholtz.

Amongst Individuals she fulfilled have been Qhino and Makatse.

Risk-free platform required for whistleblowers
The SSA discovered the absence at the time of a proper channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to show on the media.

“Failure to have a focused anti-corruption channel will bring about workforce presenting these types of scenarios outside of the NLC,” the SSA explained in its findings.

“Given the magnitude of corruption in point out institutions, it continues to be critical that it ensures that the NLC complies with all protection prescripts Which its concentrate is on guaranteeing that illegal and irregular carry out is adequately mitigated from and by making sure an adequate channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward perform with out currently being intimidated.”

It encouraged which the NLC set up a “Safe and sound channel” for employees to provide info on any “untoward exercise” that may not prevent or discourage workforce from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers plan, based upon the Safeguarded Disclosures Act 25 of 2000, is usually a prerequisite.”

Media stories Nene shown
A 10 December 2017 report during the Limpopo Mirror about corruption and maladministration involving the Lottery-funded Vhembe Wellness and Fitness Centre in Limpopo. GroundUp has worked intently with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and owner with the Limpopo Mirror, to expose NLC corruption. “The report experienced elements of information not out there in the public domain, therefore boosting worry on interior Information security breaches. The allegations while in the media ended up independently investigated,” Nene said. “On the other hand, employees accountable for divulging classified information and facts have still to get identified”;
A 28 January 2018 short article printed by the Dally Dispatch “citing various allegations from your Limpopo Mirror posting released on 10 December 2017 and also a new allegation referring to a previous staff through the title of Mzukisi Makatse. He was charged and summarily dismissed for that danger brought on for the organisation.”
A 16 November 2018 short article in the Lowvelder with regards to the misappropriation of NLC resources involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has described how, Regardless of getting R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab has not been finished. “The Lowvelder post contained categorised facts with regard to NLC plan, elevating additional concerns of inside details stability breaches,” Nene explained in her affidavit. “The prima facie proof with regard to these allegations didn't warrant an unbiased Investigation, even so [it] highlighted the heightened information protection threats within the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose a couple of dodgy R27.five-million grant to Denzhe Main Treatment, a hijacked NPO. Nene reported GroundUp experienced verified in its Tale that it absolutely was determined by leaked NLC paperwork. This was despite the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Promotion of Access to Details) request for details in regards to the task, she mentioned