The Distinctive Investigating Device has identified five accounting corporations that helped loot Lottery money. Graphic: Lisa Nelson

The Unique Investigating Device has identified 5 accounting and auditing companies that assisted non-earnings providers loot Lottery money supposed for “superior will cause”.
The accounting companies compiled fraudulent fiscal statements utilized by these organizations to apply for Lottery funding, the SIU told Parliament.
Performing Main countrywide investigations officer Zodwa Xesibe explained the SIU would get action to possess these companies blacklisted.
A 4-yr probe via the ตรวจ หวย ล่าสุด Special Investigating Unit (SIU) has exposed 5 accounting and auditing corporations that helped dodgy non-earnings corporations loot many millions of rands intended for “good leads to” within the Lottery.

These corporations had been described via the SIU as “Skilled enablers,” who “compiled fraudulent fiscal statements” that were utilized by the companies to apply for Lottery funding.

The 5 businesses have been named in Parliament with the SIU’s acting chief countrywide investigations officer Zodwa Xesibe. They can be TTP Consulting, Dzata Accountants, Magodi Consulting, Mageba Ntuli Consulting and Tafta Consulting and Accounting Services.

Fraudulent financials made by these 5 accounting companies assisted practically 40 providers get their arms on lottery funding, based on the SIU presentation.

Depending on a tool made up of info with all lottery grants considering that 2002, these providers got in excess of R314-million in funding.

“These NPCs were being funded by the Countrywide Lotteries Commission (NLC) though the money weren't utilized for their intended function,” Xesibe advised Parliament’s Trade, Market and Levels of competition Portfolio Committee very last week.

The SIU, the Hawks as well as the Countrywide Prosecuting Authority (NPA) have been in Parliament to report to the committee on progress in bringing men and women and organisations linked to looting the lottery to e-book.

Xesibe told GroundUp that the SIU intended to lodge grievances in opposition to the accounting corporations included and was examining if these companies ended up registered and, if so, with which Expert bodies.

“We want these businesses to become blacklisted,” she told GroundUp.

To qualify for Lottery funding, an organisation was required to create two several years of yearly monetary statements, Xesibe defined in Parliament.

Even so, being an ongoing six-calendar year investigation into lottery corruption by GroundUp has discovered, hijacked non-income organisations (NPOs) or new shelf non-revenue companies (NPCs) without monetary observe data ended up used to submit an application for funding.

In some occasions, Nearly identical monetary statements have been generated for unrelated organisations, normally with just the names with the organisations changed, GroundUp’s investigation discovered.

Documents submitted by legitimate NPCs for unsuccessful grant applications had been frequently used by new or hijacked NPCs and NPOs to submit an application for funding. The small print and paperwork in the unsuccessful applicants ended up provided by senior Lottery officials into the dodgy applicants.

With cursory or - typically - no verification, these dodgy applicants ended up awarded an incredible number of rands in grants. Occasionally supplemental tranches of money were being paid out without the need of Considerably examining on the progress of assignments.

The vast majority of those grants were designed by way of proactive funding, which was at the center on the looting of your lottery. Proactive funding allowed the Minister of Trade, Sector and Competitors, or the NLC along with its board, to establish causes to fund without initial requiring an software. This was stopped any time a new NLC board was appointed.

R2-billion in grants under investigation
SIU head Advocate Andy Mothibi mentioned the SIU was at the moment investigating grants valued at above R2-billion, plus the unit was nevertheless often getting tip-offs about a lot more corruption.

He told MPs the SIU’s investigation had been damaged into a few phases: the initial, that has been finalised, probed dodgy grants amounting to R280-million, and the next, also accomplished, concerned R247-million. While in the third period, because of be finalised at the end of the 12 months, the SIU is investigating grants valued at Pretty much R906-million, involving forty NPOs and NPCs, Mothibi claimed.

He claimed that the SIU would utilize “shortly” for your Presidential Proclamation, originally granted in Oct 2020 to analyze corruption involving lottery grants, to become prolonged to incorporate procurement with the NLC.

The SIU investigation had to date triggered thirteen disciplinary referrals to your NLC, and administrative referrals to SARS and the Companies and Mental Homes Fee to blacklist people implicated during the looting. Complaints involving two persons had been referred on the Lawful Apply Council and the SA Institute of Chartered Accountants.

The SIU had observed many traits underneath the prior NLC board and executive - most of whom have already been implicated in looting - Mothibi told MPs.

This integrated a “trend of collusion in between NLC officers and NPOs and NPCs”, “the hijacking of NPOs and NPCs” and “general maladministration inside the approval of grants,” he stated.

Gradual development by the NPA
The SIU has frozen households, Houses, cars and other assets truly worth tens of thousands and thousands that were purchased with lottery cash, but MPs expressed issue at slow development in prosecuting those associated with the looting. (The SIU is mandated only to Recuperate property purchased with stolen condition cash and doesn't have prosecuting powers).

Though the SIU has referred fifteen issues into the NPA, to this point only two folks have been brought prior to a court docket. Two Adult males appeared in courtroom in Kimberley not too long ago in connection with misappropriated money gathered for just a task to overcome gender-based mostly violence.

In August 2022 Christopher Tshivule was sentenced to 8 many years in prison for his section within a R1.five-million lottery grant fraud. Rates towards two persons charged with him, who the SIU has described as “kingpins” from the corruption that overwhelmed the NLC, have been dropped.

Significant-Basic Mmeli Makinyane, the acting divisional commissioner for priority offences, informed MPs that the Hawks had been at this time investigating sixteen lottery corruption-associated scenarios. Another just one - the Kimberley matter - is just before a court and two are already sent towards the NPA for a choice to prosecute. A further 5 scenarios are increasingly being investigated via the SAPS detective and forensic providers, he reported.

Outlining The explanations for your hold off in prosecutions, NPA Deputy National Director Rodney de Kock reported Component of the reason was the Hawks needed to do even further investigations if they obtained dossiers within the SIU.

“In essence, the investigations carried out through the SIU tend not to fulfill criminal criteria for prosecutions.”

Consequently, the NPA experienced to operate with investigators within the DPCI (the Hawks) and SAPS to conduct legal investigations and make sure the proof meets prison prosecution standards, he stated, adding: “Having said that, the get the job done on the SIU is essential and contributes greatly to this process.”

De Kock reported that the SIU’s investigation “generally leads to many referrals. The referrals may eventually result in a single docket and just one court docket case.”

He mentioned that 12 matters, which happen to be “approximately 85% finish”, had been getting jointly investigated with the Hawks as well as the SIU’s Specialised Economic Functions Device. (A large number of instances, seven of which were being lodged in 2020, entail former NLC Main working officer Phillemon Letwaba, who resigned under a cloud in 2022, and Pretoria attorney Leslie Ramulifho.)

De Kock mentioned the NPA confronted numerous “difficulties” in prosecuting conditions. These, he mentioned, included

the lapse of time concerning once the offences were committed as well as issuing on the Presidential Proclamation on one November 2020;
“unavailability of witnesses and/or documentary proof” (Before this year, the SIU advised the committee that key paperwork essential in a few prosecutions had been deleted with the NLC computer system or experienced absent missing from Metrofile, a warehouse where copies of files are archived and stored);
The truth that some implicated individuals remain employed by NLC; and
A obstacle on the legality of the Presidential Proclamation by previous NLC chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda.
“The NPA is committed to guaranteeing finalisation in these issues. To this conclude, a team of devoted prosecutors continues to be allocated to supervise all NLC issues at present underneath investigation,” de Kock stated. “Matters are dealt with for a precedence. Once [the] investigations are finished, the NPA can make a decision.”

What the businesses say (or don’t)
GroundUp was only capable of get comment from among the list of five organizations accused through the SIU in Parliament of producing fraudulent once-a-year fiscal statements,TTP Consulting.

Aubrey Moeng, among TTP’s two administrators, explained within an e mail in reaction to inquiries: “As a result of shopper confidentiality, we desire to recommend that TTP Consulting just isn't ready to disclose clients’ fiscal private information with the public or media … with no consent from the consumer or maybe a authorized purpose.”

The corporate is a “spouse” of numerous state entities, which includes SARS along with the CIPC, As outlined by its Internet site.

Neither of the two administrators of Dzata Accountants, who're both mentioned as inactive to the CIPC register of providers, responded to emailed inquiries. The organization continues to be deregistered by the CIPC for failing to post economic statements since 2021.

The sole director of Mageba Ntuli Buying and selling and Consulting Service, Patrick Zulu, died three several years back, In accordance with official data. The business was deregistered because of the CIPC for failing to submit fiscal statements considering that 2021.

Matamela Magodi, the only director of Magodi Consultants, didn't reply to inquiries emailed to him.

GroundUp was unable to discover any listing for Tafta Consulting and Accounting Providers With all the CIPC. We were also not able to trace any of the business’s administrators to ask for comment.