The Unique Investigating Unit has recognized 5 accounting companies that served loot Lottery money. Graphic: Lisa Nelson
The Unique Investigating Unit has determined five accounting and auditing corporations that aided non-earnings corporations loot Lottery dollars meant for “very good brings about”.
The accounting companies compiled fraudulent monetary statements used by these firms to make an application for Lottery funding, the SIU informed Parliament.
Performing chief nationwide investigations officer Zodwa Xesibe mentioned the SIU would consider motion to possess these firms blacklisted.
A 4-calendar year probe from the ผล หวย ลาว Specific Investigating Unit (SIU) has exposed 5 accounting and auditing corporations that aided dodgy non-income firms loot many a lot of rands intended for “very good causes” with the Lottery.
These firms were explained from the SIU as “Specialist enablers,” who “compiled fraudulent financial statements” that were utilized by the businesses to submit an application for Lottery funding.
The 5 corporations were named in Parliament through the SIU’s acting chief nationwide investigations officer Zodwa Xesibe. These are TTP Consulting, Dzata Accountants, Magodi Consulting, Mageba Ntuli Consulting and Tafta Consulting and Accounting Providers.
Fraudulent financials produced by these 5 accounting companies assisted almost forty organizations get their fingers on lottery funding, according to the SIU presentation.
Depending on a Device containing info with all lottery grants considering that 2002, these businesses acquired over R314-million in funding.
“These NPCs ended up funded because of the Countrywide Lotteries Commission (NLC) even so the money were not utilised for his or her meant function,” Xesibe explained to Parliament’s Trade, Industry and Competitiveness Portfolio Committee final week.
The SIU, the Hawks and the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) were being in Parliament to report to the committee on development in bringing folks and organisations linked to looting the lottery to guide.
Xesibe explained to GroundUp that the SIU meant to lodge complaints towards the accounting companies associated and was examining if these corporations had been registered and, If that's so, with which Skilled bodies.
“We would like these corporations to get blacklisted,” she told GroundUp.
To qualify for Lottery funding, an organisation was necessary to make two years of annual money statements, Xesibe explained in Parliament.
Nonetheless, being an ongoing six-yr investigation into lottery corruption by GroundUp has revealed, hijacked non-gain organisations (NPOs) or new shelf non-financial gain firms (NPCs) without any money monitor documents were accustomed to apply for funding.
In certain instances, Just about identical monetary statements were developed for unrelated organisations, frequently with only the names on the organisations changed, GroundUp’s investigation discovered.
Documents submitted by real NPCs for unsuccessful grant programs have been generally employed by new or hijacked NPCs and NPOs to submit an application for funding. The main points and paperwork in the unsuccessful applicants were equipped by senior Lottery officers into the dodgy applicants.
With cursory or - often - no verification, these dodgy applicants ended up awarded millions of rands in grants. In some cases supplemental tranches of money were compensated out devoid of Considerably examining within the development of projects.
The vast majority of those grants were created by using proactive funding, which was at the center with the looting of the lottery. Proactive funding allowed the Minister of Trade, Sector and Competitiveness, or perhaps the NLC at the side of its board, to detect triggers to fund without the need of initial requiring an software. This was stopped when a new NLC board was appointed.
R2-billion in grants below investigation
SIU head Advocate Andy Mothibi stated the SIU was at present investigating grants valued at above R2-billion, and also the device was nonetheless on a regular basis receiving suggestion-offs about additional corruption.
He told MPs that the SIU’s investigation had been broken into three phases: the very first, which has been finalised, probed dodgy grants amounting to R280-million, and the 2nd, also done, included R247-million. While in the third phase, due to be finalised at the conclusion of the yr, the SIU is investigating grants valued at Practically R906-million, involving 40 NPOs and NPCs, Mothibi said.
He reported the SIU would use “before long” for that Presidential Proclamation, originally granted in Oct 2020 to analyze corruption involving lottery grants, being extended to include procurement from the NLC.
The SIU investigation experienced to date resulted in thirteen disciplinary referrals towards the NLC, and administrative referrals to SARS and the businesses and Intellectual Attributes Commission to blacklist individuals implicated from the looting. Complaints involving two folks were referred to the Authorized Exercise Council as well as the SA Institute of Chartered Accountants.
The SIU had noticed a number of tendencies underneath the earlier NLC board and government - a lot of whom are implicated in looting - Mothibi explained to MPs.
This integrated a “trend of collusion between NLC officers and NPOs and NPCs”, “the hijacking of NPOs and NPCs” and “standard maladministration inside the approval of grants,” he reported.
Sluggish development via the NPA
The SIU has frozen households, Homes, automobiles along with other belongings worthy of tens of tens of millions that were purchased with lottery cash, but MPs expressed issue at slow progress in prosecuting Individuals associated with the looting. (The SIU is mandated only to recover belongings purchased with stolen condition funds and doesn't have prosecuting powers).
Whilst the SIU has referred fifteen issues on the NPA, to date only two people have been introduced right before a courtroom. Two Guys appeared in court in Kimberley lately in connection with misappropriated cash collected for any job to overcome gender-primarily based violence.
In August 2022 Christopher Tshivule was sentenced to eight years in jail for his element inside a R1.5-million lottery grant fraud. Fees versus two men and women billed with him, who the SIU has called “kingpins” inside the corruption that overcome the NLC, ended up dropped.
Significant-General Mmeli Makinyane, the acting divisional commissioner for priority offences, instructed MPs which the Hawks had been now investigating sixteen lottery corruption-connected situations. An additional just one - the Kimberley matter - is just before a courtroom and two are already sent for the NPA for a decision to prosecute. An extra 5 circumstances are being investigated because of the SAPS detective and forensic expert services, he explained.
Detailing the reasons with the delay in prosecutions, NPA Deputy Nationwide Director Rodney de Kock stated A part of The main reason was which the Hawks had to do even further investigations whenever they been given dossiers from the SIU.
“In essence, the investigations undertaken because of the SIU do not satisfy criminal specifications for prosecutions.”
Hence, the NPA experienced to operate with investigators in the DPCI (the Hawks) and SAPS to perform felony investigations and ensure that the proof fulfills legal prosecution standards, he said, incorporating: “That said, the get the job done in the SIU is very important and contributes significantly to this method.”
De Kock said the SIU’s investigation “often ends in multiple referrals. The referrals may possibly ultimately lead to a person docket and 1 courtroom scenario.”
He said that 12 issues, which might be “somewhere around eighty five% entire”, were being jointly investigated from the Hawks and also the SIU’s Specialised Economic Functions Unit. (Most of these cases, 7 of which ended up lodged in 2020, entail previous NLC chief functioning officer Phillemon Letwaba, who resigned underneath a cloud in 2022, and Pretoria lawyer Leslie Ramulifho.)
De Kock reported the NPA confronted several “troubles” in prosecuting circumstances. These, he stated, provided
the lapse of your time in between if the offences were being committed along with the issuing with the Presidential Proclamation on one November 2020;
“unavailability of witnesses and/or documentary proof” (Previously this 12 months, the SIU told the committee that key documents needed in certain prosecutions were deleted from the NLC Pc method or experienced absent missing from Metrofile, a warehouse where copies of files are archived and stored);
The point that some implicated men and women are still utilized by NLC; and
A challenge to your legality on the Presidential Proclamation by previous NLC chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda.
“The NPA is committed to making certain finalisation in these issues. To this end, a group of devoted prosecutors has long been allotted to supervise all NLC issues presently beneath investigation,” de Kock explained. “Matters are managed for a precedence. The moment [the] investigations are done, the NPA could make a choice.”
What the companies say (or don’t)
GroundUp was only capable to get comment from one of several five providers accused because of the SIU in Parliament of producing fraudulent annual economical statements,TTP Consulting.
Aubrey Moeng, considered one of TTP’s two directors, reported in an electronic mail in response to questions: “Resulting from client confidentiality, we would like to recommend that TTP Consulting is not ready to disclose purchasers’ monetary confidential data with the general public or media … with no consent of your shopper or a lawful reason.”
The company is really a “companion” of a number of point out entities, including SARS and the CIPC, according to its Web page.
Neither of the two administrators of Dzata Accountants, who're both mentioned as inactive about the CIPC sign up of firms, responded to emailed concerns. The corporation is deregistered from the CIPC for failing to submit financial statements considering that 2021.
The only real director of Mageba Ntuli Investing and Consulting Services, Patrick Zulu, died three a long time in the past, As outlined by official data. The corporate was deregistered because of the CIPC for failing to post fiscal statements due to the fact 2021.
Matamela Magodi, the only director of Magodi Consultants, did not reply to thoughts emailed to him.
GroundUp was struggling to come across any listing for Tafta Consulting and Accounting Products and services While using the CIPC. We were being also not able to trace any of the company’s directors to request comment.