Lottery bosses turned to Point out Safety Agency to research leaks
Lottery bosses turned to Point out Safety Agency to research leaks
Blog Article
Former Nationwide Lotteries Fee (NLC) board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda questioned the State Security Agency (SSA) in December 2018 to investigate the leaking of documents that exposed lottery corruption.
The NLC’s firm secretary at enough time stated media experiences she reported were being according to “stolen” info within an affidavit for that SSA.
The SSA did examine. It discovered the data was not a matter of point out security 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 because taken about the NLC and thus far have taken actions to finish corruption on 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 sufficient motive” for publicity via the media.
The probe into supposed “details protection breaches and sabotage of NLC operations” was undertaken soon after then-NLC board chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda wrote to your SSA in December 2018 requesting it to analyze.
Here is
Nevhutanda’s letter,
an affidavit by at the moment suspended NLC corporation secretary Nompumelelo Nene supporting the request, and
the security company’s “confidential” findings and proposals.
Nevhutanda requested the SSA to analyze the position of NLC workers within the alleged leaking of data, and Nene, in her affidavit identified precise media and reports that she claimed included these leaks.
During the letter outlining its results, the SSA advised the NLC that even though shielding condition facts was “a authorized crucial directed at safeguarding the sovereignty and integrity on the condition” this only placed on appropriately labeled details.
Although it didn't say so directly, the SSA results implied the allegedly leaked facts did not fall into this class.
Noticeably, the SSA produced it apparent that the necessity to secure state information and facts “will not stop any personal from blowing the whistle on corruption or irregular or criminal activity”.
The SSA investigation uncovered that the NLC details associated with the alleged breach was “sensitive and privileged in character, although not categorised in terms of the prescripts with the Minimum amount Information Security Standards (Pass up)”.
“The leakage on the relevant sensitive Formal NLC data on the media would not pose a danger to national security,” the SSA stated, introducing the influence of your breaches was reputational.
The SSA report located “no evidence of a factual and incriminating mother nature towards any of your suspected NLC personnel that may be determined from the data and information interrogated”.
In addition it stated that “the prevalence of alleged corruption and irregularities inside the NLC and at its beneficiaries does give enough motive to obtain this kind of exposed inside the media”.
Conspiracy claims
In 2020, Nevhutanda informed MPs for the duration of a session of Parliament’s trade, sector and Level of competition portfolio committee that there was “a conspiracy” wherein facts “stolen” through the NLC was sent into the US, wherever he claimed it was remaining offered to fund a smear marketing campaign in opposition to the NLC.
He was repeating similar statements he experienced previously manufactured in Parliament, which included advertisement hominem assaults on GroundUp which reporter but was careful not to name either.
“I came below in this August residence very last 12 months and claimed to honourable users that information about our beneficiaries continues to be stolen and put in a single point out in the united states,” he advised MPs.
“We named about the State Stability Agency to come take a look at the make any difference mainly because we're getting stories that our details is generating income for media platforms and journalists,” he stated. “There was speak, not surprisingly from a single supply, a person media, that spoke Significantly about proactive-funding,” Nevhutanda claimed (referring to GroundUp), but didn't tell MPs that the SSA investigation were completed Nearly a yr earlier.
Proactive funding was at the heart from the looting from the lottery. It side-stepped the traditional grant system. The NLC could alone discover a task to fund and appoint a non-earnings organisation to oversee it.
Just after Nevhutanda initially advised Parliament in 2018 that he experienced requested the SSA to analyze the intended breach, the South African Countrywide Editors Forum issued an announcement saying that his remarks mirrored “an especially harmful attitude where by the media is currently being blamed for your NLC’s inherent complications”.
“In lieu of investigating why millions can't be accounted for, the NLC has rather attempted to Forged question around the integrity on the journalists associated and it has asked the SSA to investigate their sources.”
Proactive assignments designed secret
Security flaws identified within the NLC grant funding process in the SSA’s investigation, show up to happen to be used as an excuse because of the NLC to remove all proactive-funded initiatives from its central grants procedure.
“In or about 21 December 2019, the classification of all pro-actively funding initiatives was heightened to ‘mystery’ and assignments ended up removed from the grant funding system and taken care of manually underneath the custody of [Tsietsi Maselwa] the NLC’s [then] Deputy Data Business, Executive Manager Lawful in an effort to safeguard [the] information,” Nene stated in her affidavit.
“There was loads of interior dialogue, with many back and forth, about what to do to plug the alleged leaks”, a resource, who was inside of a senior situation in the NLC at time, explained to GroundUp. “Eventually, the decision was taken to remove many of the proactive tasks from the method and Restrict usage of a handful of folks”.
Some in that handful of people ended up implicated in corruption.
Maselwa, who resigned in the NLC several several years back, continues to be implicated in corruption involving lottery resources. He received R4.3-million from lottery money allotted to build a library and museum intricate in Kuruman (see Taung Cultural Tunes and Arts Expo) which he applied to make a dwelling within an upmarket gated progress in Pretoria. The residence is among many paid for with lottery resources which were frozen following the Asset Forfeiture Device received a preservation order in December 2022.
The politically-linked Nevhutanda, who was appointed because the NLC board chairperson by previous President Jacob Zuma in 2009 and was near substantial-ups in the ANC leadership, previous NLC previous Commissioner Thabang Mampane, and ex-Main operating officer Phillemon Letwaba, have all been implicated while in the corruption which confused the NLC on their own view.
Also implicated are former board associates William Huma, who resigned immediately after he was confronted with proof of how he experienced profited from corrupt lottery grants, and Muthuhadini Madzivhandila, who may have because died.
Each time a new administration, including the whole board and executive, took over in the NLC in late 2022 and early 2023, they found a “chaotic mess” in the documentation relating to proactive funding, much of which was paper-dependent. Essential documents ended up missing. Documents held for safekeeping by document storage corporation Metrofile had been signed out and hardly ever returned.
The NLC was capable to Get better copies of some ruay paperwork from its Mimecast email archiving procedure plus the laptops of their assistants and aid personnel.
Information studies
In his one December 2018 letter, addressed to then SSA Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba, Nevhutanda wrote: “The NLC has observed with grave concern attainable information safety breaches plus the unauthorised use and/or dissemination of private info acquired due to accomplishing Formal capabilities during the Fee by NLC employees. The actions are intended to undermine the integrity of the Fee though disrupting the helpful features [in the NLC] and leading to insurmountable reputational harm into the Commission because the custodian of private data entrusted to it by its beneficiaries.”
His ask for for that 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 report the events which transpired referring to data protection breaches for the Countrywide Lotteries Fee”.
She stated several information studies which she claimed have been the outcome of these “breaches” (see at the conclusion of this short article).
Nene said that a whistle-blower approached the NLC alleging that amongst its staff members, Sello Qhino, had “delivered her labeled NLC Info and persistently inspired her to provide the knowledge to GroundUp”.
Qhino, who blew the whistle over a series of dodgy lottery-funded assignments in Kuruman just after attempts to raise The problem internally were being ignored, was subsequently fired.
Referring to an 18 November 2018 write-up from the Daily Dispatch in regards to the misappropriation of Lottery cash, Nene claimed the NLC determined and after that suspended Zintle Rungqu. She was an staff inside the NLC’s East London office, who was the associate and the mother of whistleblower Mzukise Makatse’s 3 small children.
Rungqu and Makatse think Rungqu was punished mainly because Makatse blew the whistle. She was suspended and billed internally, with the NLC paying R470,000 on attorneys to depict it, but was located not guilty and allowed to return to work.
“The common Think about these articles is that [they contain] labeled data associated with proactive funding tasks,” Nene reported in her affidavit.
When Runqu was suspended, Makatse moved out with the loved ones home to go ahead and take warmth off her and his young children. Facing homelessness, he moved into an Business office within an empty manufacturing facility belonging to a colleague.
The two Makatse and Qhino are taking part in an NLC reparation system meant to recognise the harm many people endured for the palms of your NLC. Apologies and, occasionally, financial payment are envisioned.
“Some people today were being seriously influenced quite negatively by this … This is absolutely unpleasant,” NLC Commissioner Jodi Scholtz told the Daily Maverick very last yr.
“I achieved a handful of these folks. It absolutely was just so heart-wrenching that their full lives are turned upside down,” explained Scholtz.
Among People she achieved were Qhino and Makatse.
Risk-free System desired for whistleblowers
The SSA discovered the absence at time of a suitable channel for whistleblowers to report corruption led them to show to your media.
“Failure to possess a committed anti-corruption channel will end in staff members presenting these types of conditions beyond the NLC,” the SSA claimed in its results.
“Provided the magnitude of corruption in state establishments, it stays essential that it makes certain that the NLC complies with all protection prescripts Which its target is on making sure that illegal and irregular carry out is adequately mitigated against and by ensuring an ample channel for whistle-blowers to report untoward perform devoid of being intimidated.”
It recommended that the NLC build a “Harmless channel” for employees to supply info on any “untoward action” that might not reduce or discourage workers from blowing the whistle. A whistle-blowers policy, according to the Safeguarded Disclosures Act 25 of 2000, is usually a need.”
Media experiences Nene mentioned
A 10 December 2017 report while in the Limpopo Mirror about corruption and maladministration involving the Lottery-funded Vhembe Health and fitness and Health and fitness Centre in Limpopo. GroundUp has worked closely with Anton van Zyl, an investigative reporter and owner of the Limpopo Mirror, to reveal NLC corruption. “The report experienced elements of information not readily available in the general public domain, thereby raising issue on inside Data safety breaches. The allegations during the media were independently investigated,” Nene reported. “However, workforce chargeable for divulging categorized information and facts have nevertheless to become determined”;
A 28 January 2018 post released through the Dally Dispatch “citing numerous allegations with the Limpopo Mirror write-up released on ten December 2017 and also a new allegation concerning a former employee via the identify of Mzukisi Makatse. He was billed and summarily dismissed for the risk induced to your organisation.”
A 16 November 2018 post inside the Lowvelder with regard to the misappropriation of NLC cash involving a lottery-funded drug rehabilitation centre. GroundUp has noted how, Despite obtaining R27-million in lottery grants, the rehab has never been concluded. “The Lowvelder write-up contained categorised data with regards to NLC plan, raising more concerns of inner information protection breaches,” Nene said in her affidavit. “The prima facie evidence regarding these allegations did not warrant an impartial Investigation, nevertheless [it] highlighted the heightened information and facts stability hazards in the NLC.”
A 22 November 2018 GroundUp expose a couple of dodgy R27.5-million grant to Denzhe Major Care, a hijacked NPO. Nene mentioned GroundUp had confirmed in its Tale that it had been based upon leaked NLC paperwork. This was despite the NLC rejecting a PAIA (Advertising of Access to Facts) request for specifics with regard to the job, she explained