The Specific Investigating Device has identified five accounting corporations that aided loot Lottery funds. Graphic: Lisa Nelson

The Distinctive Investigating Unit has determined 5 accounting and auditing firms that aided non-earnings organizations loot Lottery money meant for “good will cause”.
The accounting corporations compiled fraudulent financial statements used by these firms to submit an application for Lottery funding, the SIU instructed Parliament.
Performing chief national investigations officer Zodwa Xesibe explained the SIU would acquire motion to obtain these corporations blacklisted.
A four-year probe by the fox888 Particular Investigating Device (SIU) has uncovered 5 accounting and auditing corporations that helped dodgy non-earnings corporations loot a huge selection of an incredible number of rands meant for “excellent leads to” in the Lottery.

These firms ended up described because of the SIU as “Qualified enablers,” who “compiled fraudulent fiscal statements” that were utilized by the businesses to apply for Lottery funding.

The 5 organizations were being named in Parliament from the SIU’s performing Main national 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 firms assisted just about forty providers get their arms on lottery funding, in accordance with the SIU presentation.

Dependant on a Software made up of details with all lottery grants considering the fact that 2002, these providers obtained above R314-million in funding.

“These NPCs had been funded by the Countrywide Lotteries Fee (NLC) even so the funds weren't employed for his or her meant objective,” Xesibe told Parliament’s Trade, Industry and Opposition Portfolio Committee last week.

The SIU, the Hawks as well as the Countrywide Prosecuting Authority (NPA) have been in Parliament to report to the committee on development in bringing people and organisations involved with looting the lottery to reserve.

Xesibe informed GroundUp that the SIU intended to lodge complaints from the accounting corporations involved and was checking if these companies were registered and, If that's so, with which Experienced bodies.

“We want these providers for being blacklisted,” she instructed GroundUp.

To qualify for Lottery funding, an organisation was needed to produce two several years of yearly economical statements, Xesibe discussed in Parliament.

Having said that, being an ongoing 6-12 months investigation into lottery corruption by GroundUp has disclosed, hijacked non-revenue organisations (NPOs) or new shelf non-income corporations (NPCs) without fiscal track data were utilized to submit an application for funding.

In a few situations, almost similar monetary statements ended up made for unrelated organisations, normally with just the names in the organisations improved, GroundUp’s investigation found.

Paperwork submitted by authentic NPCs for unsuccessful grant purposes had been usually utilized by new or hijacked NPCs and NPOs to make an application for funding. The details and files of the unsuccessful applicants have been supplied by senior Lottery officials towards the dodgy applicants.

With cursory or - typically - no verification, these dodgy applicants have been awarded many rands in grants. At times further tranches of funds were compensated out devoid of Significantly examining around the development of jobs.

The vast majority of those grants had been built via proactive funding, which was at the heart on the looting of the lottery. Proactive funding allowed the Minister of Trade, Sector and Competitors, or even the NLC together with its board, to establish results in to fund without the need of to start with necessitating an application. This was stopped when a new NLC board was appointed.

R2-billion in grants less than investigation
SIU head Advocate Andy Mothibi claimed the SIU was at this time investigating grants valued at more than R2-billion, and the unit was still consistently receiving suggestion-offs about extra corruption.

He told MPs that the SIU’s investigation had been broken into a few phases: the first, that has been finalised, probed dodgy grants amounting to R280-million, and the next, also accomplished, concerned R247-million. Within the 3rd stage, on account of be finalised at the end of the calendar year, the SIU is investigating grants valued at Practically R906-million, involving 40 NPOs and NPCs, Mothibi claimed.

He mentioned which the SIU would use “shortly” for your Presidential Proclamation, initially granted in Oct 2020 to investigate corruption involving lottery grants, to generally be extended to include procurement with the NLC.

The SIU investigation experienced to this point led to 13 disciplinary referrals to your NLC, and administrative referrals to SARS and the Companies and Intellectual Homes Fee to blacklist people today implicated in the looting. Complaints involving two people were referred into the Lawful Exercise Council as well as SA Institute of Chartered Accountants.

The SIU experienced observed several traits beneath the preceding NLC board and executive - most of whom are implicated in looting - Mothibi advised MPs.

This provided a “pattern of collusion among NLC officers and NPOs and NPCs”, “the hijacking of NPOs and NPCs” and “standard maladministration inside the acceptance of grants,” he stated.

Sluggish progress through the NPA
The SIU has frozen homes, Houses, cars and trucks together with other belongings worth tens of hundreds of thousands that were bought with lottery funds, but MPs expressed concern at gradual development in prosecuting All those linked to the looting. (The SIU is mandated only to Get well property bought with stolen state resources and doesn't have prosecuting powers).

Though the SIU has referred fifteen issues on the NPA, up to now only two people have been introduced ahead of a court. Two Adult males appeared in court in Kimberley recently in connection with misappropriated resources collected for a job to fight gender-centered violence.

In August 2022 Christopher Tshivule was sentenced to eight decades in jail for his element in a very R1.five-million lottery grant fraud. Rates against two folks charged with him, who the SIU has described as “kingpins” while in the corruption that overcome the NLC, have been dropped.

Main-Standard Mmeli Makinyane, the acting divisional commissioner for priority offences, explained to MPs which the Hawks ended up at this time investigating 16 lottery corruption-related conditions. One more one particular - the Kimberley make a difference - is right before a courtroom and two have been sent to the NPA for a choice to prosecute. An extra five situations are increasingly being investigated from the SAPS detective and forensic products and services, he stated.

Detailing The explanations for that hold off in prosecutions, NPA Deputy Countrywide Director Rodney de Kock reported part of The main reason was that the Hawks needed to do further investigations when they received dossiers from the SIU.

“In essence, the investigations carried out with the SIU usually do not satisfy felony specifications for prosecutions.”

As a result, the NPA experienced to work with investigators in the DPCI (the Hawks) and SAPS to carry out prison investigations and be certain that the proof meets felony prosecution standards, he explained, introducing: “That said, the operate of your SIU is very important and contributes considerably to this method.”

De Kock said that the SIU’s investigation “frequently leads to several referrals. The referrals may possibly in the long run end in just one docket and a person courtroom situation.”

He stated that twelve matters, which can be “roughly eighty five% comprehensive”, had been being jointly investigated because of the Hawks along with the SIU’s Specialised Economic Operations Device. (The majority of these cases, seven of which were being lodged in 2020, include previous NLC Main working officer Phillemon Letwaba, who resigned less than a cloud in 2022, and Pretoria lawyer Leslie Ramulifho.)

De Kock explained the NPA confronted several “problems” in prosecuting scenarios. These, he reported, included

the lapse of your time concerning in the event the offences were being fully commited and the issuing of the Presidential Proclamation on one November 2020;
“unavailability of witnesses and/or documentary evidence” (Earlier this calendar year, the SIU advised the committee that crucial documents wanted in a few prosecutions were deleted through the NLC Pc procedure or had long gone missing from Metrofile, a warehouse wherever copies of documents are archived and stored);
The reality that some implicated people are still utilized by NLC; and
A obstacle towards the legality on the Presidential Proclamation by previous NLC chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda.
“The NPA is dedicated to making sure finalisation in these issues. To this end, a group of devoted prosecutors has become allocated to oversee all NLC matters presently under investigation,” de Kock stated. “Issues are taken care of for a priority. When [the] investigations are finished, the NPA could make a choice.”

What the companies say (or don’t)
GroundUp was only able to get remark from one of many 5 organizations accused by the SIU in Parliament of manufacturing fraudulent once-a-year fiscal statements,TTP Consulting.

Aubrey Moeng, one of TTP’s two directors, reported in an e-mail in response to thoughts: “As a result of customer confidentiality, we need to advise that TTP Consulting isn't willing to divulge clientele’ fiscal confidential data with the public or media … without the consent with the consumer or a lawful cause.”

The corporate can be a “husband or wife” of quite a few point out entities, together with SARS and also the CIPC, In accordance with its Site.

Neither of the two administrators of Dzata Accountants, who're both mentioned as inactive about the CIPC register of corporations, responded to emailed issues. The corporation has become deregistered from the CIPC for failing to submit economical statements given that 2021.

The only director of Mageba Ntuli Investing and Consulting Company, Patrick Zulu, died a few a long time in the past, In keeping with Formal records. The organization was deregistered with the CIPC for failing to submit economic statements considering that 2021.

Matamela Magodi, the only real director of Magodi Consultants, didn't respond to concerns emailed to him.

GroundUp was struggling to come across any listing for Tafta Consulting and Accounting Products and services While using the CIPC. We have been also unable to trace any of the corporate’s directors to ask for remark.