SIU applies to extend lottery corruption probe

SIU applies to extend lottery corruption probe

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A decision about the Exclusive Investigation Unit’s (SIU) application to amend the 2020 Presidential Proclamation is predicted by the end of February.
The initial proclamation only authorized the SIU to analyze grants made by the National Lotteries Commission (NLC) among one January 2014 and 7 November 2020.
The SIU is trying to get a mandate to investigate lottery-funded projects that fall outside that period.
In addition, it desires to investigate fraud and corruption related to the NLC’s procurement of services, which wasn't lined ตรวจ สลาก below the initial 2020 proclamation.
The NLC has had new management and board because 2022 and is assisting the SIU with its investigations.
A call on the appliance with the Particular Investigating Unit (SIU) for that amendment of the 2020 Presidential Proclamation mandating it to research corruption involving the Countrywide Lotteries Commission (NLC) and its employees, is anticipated by the top on the thirty day period.

This was confirmed via the Division of Justice’s spokesperson Kgalalelo Masibi. “The commitment was submitted for the Office late last yr which is being well prepared for submission to your Minister to endorse the authorisation from the amendment towards the proclamation. A decision may be expected by the top of February 2025,” Masibi explained to GroundUp.

The first proclamation only permitted the SIU to research grants made by the NLC between one January 2014 and 7 November 2020. This remaining the SIU hamstrung when investigating fraud and corruption involving the NLC’s procurement of products and services and appointment of assistance companies, which ran to hundreds of many rand.

In its enthusiasm to amend the proclamation, the SIU is looking for a mandate allowing for it to investigate lottery-funded initiatives that tumble outside the period of time included by the original proclamation, Because the NLC’s corruption continued following the proclamation was gazetted.

Although the SIU couldn’t specifically look into procurement, because the original proclamation didn't include it, it seconded two of its officers into the NLC to aid it in its investigations into dodgy procurement.

GroundUp has also figured out the SIU along with the NLC just lately signed a whole new letter of engagement extending the relationship concerning the two entities by a year. Their agreement expired at the conclusion of December 2024.

The NLC’s probe, which includes the assistance with the SIU’s seconded officials and a number of other damning investigations by unbiased audit organizations, usually means the SIU could have a bounce commence in a very probe into procurement When the proclamation is extended.

The NLC plus the SIU have also been inundated with idea-offs. Most are from whistleblowers about dodgy grant and provide chain administration fraud and corruption, several of which happened just after November 2020.

The 2020 proclamation includes an exception for the SIU to analyze alleged corruption that befell right before or following the date of its publication …“but is related to, related with, incidental or ancillary on the matters … or contain the exact same individuals, entities or contracts”.

The SIU’s motivation also seeks a mandate to research fraud and corruption involving the NLC’s source chain management as well as procurement of companies.

The SIU Beforehand informed GroundUp it absolutely was investigating over 700 dodgy job grants, with more tip-offs coming in. Many NLC staff members are facing disciplinary costs about their alleged involvement in dodgy procurement. Other individuals resigned once they had been charged. The SIU has also reported most of Those people included on the police.

In 2022 the SIU told Parliament’s Trade, Field and Level of competition portfolio committee that it had been investigating dodgy lottery grants valued at more than R1.four-billion. Final calendar year SIU head Advocate Andy Mothibi informed the committee that the worth of dodgy grants below investigation experienced developed to more than R2-billion.

SIU spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago declined to touch upon the applying to extend the proclamation.

Dodgy procurement
In 2023, the Auditor-Standard instructed the NLC’s administration to deal with “essential inner Regulate deficiencies discovered to improve procurement and contract management”. This arrived once the Auditor-General’s NLC audit in 2021 uncovered greater than R23-million in irregular expenditure and R36-million in accounting mistakes created in earlier a long time. Items worsened the following calendar year, While using the Auditor-Normal’s 2022 management report on the NLC revealing approximately R57-million in irregular expenditure due to contravention of provide chain administration legislation.

Amid the problems flagged in damning studies by the Auditor-Standard, and by auditors appointed by the NLC, have been irregular expenditure on information and facts technological innovation and sky-superior investing on lawyers. The NLC struggled to answer a composed parliamentary concern about its expenditure on authorized expenses, as critical documents with facts of multimillion-rand litigation expenditure have vanished.

A different place of worry would be the tens of numerous rand in paying on media and communications, having a disproportionate amount of money paid out towards the Sunday Environment newspaper.

A lot of rand in dodgy payments had been also built to NLC support vendors, which includes a R498,000 payment to company provider Neo Consulting to research a pc hack that hardly ever happened.

ProEthics, which suggested the NLC on ethics once the organisation was overcome by rampant corruption, was also accustomed to launder payments to assistance vendors. The NLC compensated ProEthics about R28.four-million. The corporate, consequently, explained it paid out other services providers over the NLC’s Guidance — which include a R1.7-million payment for a flash mob that hardly ever took place.

The findings of impartial investigations commissioned from the NLC’s new board and govt have already been vital in formulating disciplinary fees versus implicated personnel, including NLC firm secretary Nompumelelo Nene.

Nene is billed with alleged irregularities in the appointments of and payments to numerous provider vendors. She is also accused of supplying “Fake or incomplete data in submissions justifying deviations from procurement processes”.