The accountants who assisted loot the Lottery
The accountants who assisted loot the Lottery
Blog Article
The Exclusive Investigating Unit has recognized five accounting corporations that served loot Lottery cash. Graphic: Lisa Nelson
The Exclusive Investigating Unit has discovered five accounting and auditing corporations that aided non-earnings organizations loot Lottery money supposed for “excellent causes”.
The accounting firms compiled fraudulent economic statements utilized by these corporations to submit an application for Lottery funding, the SIU explained to Parliament.
Performing Main nationwide investigations officer Zodwa Xesibe explained the SIU would just take action to acquire these companies blacklisted.
A four-year probe from the lottovip Unique Investigating Device (SIU) has exposed five accounting and auditing corporations that aided dodgy non-gain businesses loot countless millions of rands meant for “excellent triggers” with the Lottery.
These companies were being described because of the SIU as “Qualified enablers,” who “compiled fraudulent money statements” which were used by the businesses to make an application for Lottery funding.
The 5 providers were being named in Parliament with the SIU’s acting Main countrywide investigations officer Zodwa Xesibe. They can be TTP Consulting, Dzata Accountants, Magodi Consulting, Mageba Ntuli Consulting and Tafta Consulting and Accounting Solutions.
Fraudulent financials produced by these five accounting companies assisted just about forty providers get their arms on lottery funding, in accordance with the SIU presentation.
Based on a tool made up of information with all lottery grants considering the fact that 2002, these providers obtained about R314-million in funding.
“These NPCs ended up funded via the Nationwide Lotteries Commission (NLC) but the resources weren't made use of for his or her supposed objective,” Xesibe instructed Parliament’s Trade, Business and Competitors Portfolio Committee past 7 days.
The SIU, the Hawks as well as Countrywide Prosecuting Authority (NPA) have been in Parliament to report to the committee on progress in bringing men and women and organisations involved with looting the lottery to ebook.
Xesibe advised GroundUp the SIU intended to lodge complaints versus the accounting companies involved and was examining if these firms were being registered and, If that is so, with which Skilled bodies.
“We wish these corporations for being blacklisted,” she informed GroundUp.
To qualify for Lottery funding, an organisation was needed to produce two several years of annual money statements, Xesibe defined in Parliament.
Even so, being an ongoing 6-calendar year investigation into lottery corruption by GroundUp has unveiled, hijacked non-gain organisations (NPOs) or new shelf non-gain companies (NPCs) without having money monitor documents had been accustomed to apply for funding.
In a few circumstances, Pretty much similar economical statements have been generated for unrelated organisations, usually with only the names of your organisations transformed, GroundUp’s investigation found.
Paperwork submitted by authentic NPCs for unsuccessful grant purposes have been generally utilized by new or hijacked NPCs and NPOs to make an application for funding. The details and files with the unsuccessful applicants were being provided by senior Lottery officers on the dodgy applicants.
With cursory or - generally - no verification, these dodgy applicants ended up awarded many rands in grants. Occasionally extra tranches of funds were paid out out devoid of Considerably checking on the development of tasks.
The overwhelming majority of these grants have been manufactured by means of proactive funding, which was at the guts of your looting of your lottery. Proactive funding authorized the Minister of Trade, Marketplace and Competitors, or maybe the NLC in conjunction with its board, to identify results in to fund devoid of 1st requiring an application. This was stopped when a new NLC board was appointed.
R2-billion in grants underneath investigation
SIU head Advocate Andy Mothibi mentioned the SIU was presently investigating grants valued at around R2-billion, plus the unit was even now often receiving suggestion-offs about additional corruption.
He explained to MPs which the SIU’s investigation were damaged into 3 phases: the primary, which has been finalised, probed dodgy grants amounting to R280-million, and the 2nd, also done, included R247-million. During the 3rd stage, as a result of be finalised at the conclusion of the 12 months, the SIU is investigating grants valued at Virtually R906-million, involving forty NPOs and NPCs, Mothibi mentioned.
He reported the SIU would utilize “shortly” for your Presidential Proclamation, at first granted in October 2020 to research corruption involving lottery grants, to be extended to incorporate procurement from the NLC.
The SIU investigation experienced to this point resulted in 13 disciplinary referrals to the NLC, and administrative referrals to SARS and the Companies and Mental Houses Fee to blacklist folks implicated while in the looting. Issues involving two people today were referred to the Lawful Observe Council and the SA Institute of Chartered Accountants.
The SIU experienced noticed many tendencies beneath the past NLC board and government - a lot of whom happen to be implicated in looting - Mothibi explained to MPs.
This bundled a “craze of collusion in between NLC officers and NPOs and NPCs”, “the hijacking of NPOs and NPCs” and “general maladministration from the acceptance of grants,” he mentioned.
Gradual progress because of the NPA
The SIU has frozen homes, Homes, autos along with other property truly worth tens of millions that were acquired with lottery resources, but MPs expressed issue at sluggish progress in prosecuting People involved with the looting. (The SIU is mandated only to Get better belongings acquired with stolen condition funds and doesn't have prosecuting powers).
When the SIU has referred fifteen matters to the NPA, so far only two folks have been introduced ahead of a court. Two men appeared in courtroom in Kimberley just lately in connection with misappropriated cash collected for just a undertaking to beat gender-primarily based violence.
In August 2022 Christopher Tshivule was sentenced to 8 yrs in prison for his part in a very R1.5-million lottery grant fraud. Expenses versus two men and women billed with him, who the SIU has described as “kingpins” within the corruption that overcome the NLC, have been dropped.
Big-Normal Mmeli Makinyane, the performing divisional commissioner for priority offences, informed MPs that the Hawks were currently investigating sixteen lottery corruption-linked scenarios. One more one particular - the Kimberley subject - is in advance of a court and two have already been despatched for the NPA for a call to prosecute. A further five conditions are being investigated because of the SAPS detective and forensic providers, he claimed.
Explaining the reasons to the delay in prosecutions, NPA Deputy Countrywide Director Rodney de Kock said Portion of The rationale was which the Hawks needed to do further investigations after they gained dossiers within the SIU.
“In essence, the investigations carried out with the SIU will not satisfy legal criteria for prosecutions.”
Hence, the NPA had to work with investigators in the DPCI (the Hawks) and SAPS to perform legal investigations and make certain that the proof fulfills prison prosecution criteria, he mentioned, introducing: “That said, the work on the SIU is important and contributes drastically to this process.”
De Kock claimed which the SIU’s investigation “normally brings about multiple referrals. The referrals might in the end lead to a single docket and a single court circumstance.”
He reported that 12 matters, which are “close to 85% total”, were being jointly investigated via the Hawks and the SIU’s Specialised Financial Functions Unit. (A large number of circumstances, 7 of which were lodged in 2020, require previous NLC chief running officer Phillemon Letwaba, who resigned less than a cloud in 2022, and Pretoria lawyer Leslie Ramulifho.)
De Kock mentioned the NPA faced many “worries” in prosecuting instances. These, he mentioned, provided
the lapse of time amongst if the offences ended up dedicated as well as issuing of your Presidential Proclamation on one November 2020;
“unavailability of witnesses and/or documentary evidence” (Earlier this calendar year, the SIU explained to the committee that vital paperwork necessary in certain prosecutions had been deleted within the NLC Laptop or computer technique or had gone lacking from Metrofile, a warehouse wherever copies of documents are archived and saved);
The reality that some implicated folks remain employed by NLC; and
A problem towards the legality of your Presidential Proclamation by former NLC chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda.
“The NPA is devoted to making certain finalisation in these matters. To this end, a group of focused prosecutors is allotted to supervise all NLC issues currently beneath investigation,” de Kock reported. “Issues are taken care of as being a priority. When [the] investigations are concluded, the NPA is likely to make a call.”
What the companies say (or don’t)
GroundUp was only able to get comment from on the list of 5 providers accused from the SIU in Parliament of manufacturing fraudulent once-a-year economical statements,TTP Consulting.
Aubrey Moeng, amongst TTP’s two directors, stated within an e mail in response to questions: “Because of shopper confidentiality, we prefer to advise that TTP Consulting will not be willing to divulge purchasers’ monetary private info with the general public or media … with no consent of the consumer or simply a authorized motive.”
The business is really a “lover” of several point out entities, which includes SARS plus the CIPC, In keeping with its website.
Neither of The 2 directors of Dzata Accountants, who are each detailed as inactive around the CIPC sign up of corporations, responded to emailed inquiries. The business is deregistered via the CIPC for failing to post fiscal statements since 2021.
The only director of Mageba Ntuli Buying and selling and Consulting Service, Patrick Zulu, died three a long time in the past, In keeping with Formal documents. The corporation was deregistered from the CIPC for failing to post economical statements since 2021.
Matamela Magodi, the sole director of Magodi Consultants, didn't reply to issues emailed to him.
GroundUp was not able to uncover any listing for Tafta Consulting and Accounting Expert services Along with the CIPC. We had been also struggling to trace any of the corporate’s directors to request remark.