The accountants who served loot the Lottery
The accountants who served loot the Lottery
Blog Article
The Specific Investigating Unit has determined five accounting firms that served loot Lottery resources. Graphic: Lisa Nelson
The Specific Investigating Device has identified five accounting and auditing companies that served non-income companies loot Lottery dollars intended for “very good causes”.
The accounting corporations compiled fraudulent economic statements used by these providers to make an application for Lottery funding, the SIU informed Parliament.
Performing chief countrywide investigations officer Zodwa Xesibe mentioned the SIU would choose motion to acquire these firms blacklisted.
A four-12 months probe from the ltpbet Distinctive Investigating Device (SIU) has exposed 5 accounting and auditing companies that assisted dodgy non-income providers loot many hundreds of a lot of rands meant for “great causes” in the Lottery.
These companies have been described through the SIU as “Expert enablers,” who “compiled fraudulent financial statements” that were used by the businesses to submit an application for Lottery funding.
The five providers had been named in Parliament from the SIU’s acting Main countrywide investigations officer Zodwa Xesibe. They may be TTP Consulting, Dzata Accountants, Magodi Consulting, Mageba Ntuli Consulting and Tafta Consulting and Accounting Products and services.
Fraudulent financials made by these five accounting corporations assisted practically 40 companies get their arms on lottery funding, according to the SIU presentation.
Based on a Resource that contains details with all lottery grants considering that 2002, these corporations got around R314-million in funding.
“These NPCs were funded with the Countrywide Lotteries Commission (NLC) nevertheless the money weren't employed for their intended objective,” Xesibe instructed Parliament’s Trade, Industry and Level of competition Portfolio Committee very last week.
The SIU, the Hawks and also the Countrywide Prosecuting Authority (NPA) had been in Parliament to report back to the committee on development in bringing individuals and organisations involved with looting the lottery to reserve.
Xesibe informed GroundUp which the SIU meant to lodge issues versus the accounting firms concerned and was checking if these firms ended up registered and, In that case, with which Experienced bodies.
“We want these firms to be blacklisted,” she informed GroundUp.
To qualify for Lottery funding, an organisation was required to generate two yrs of once-a-year financial statements, Xesibe described in Parliament.
Even so, as an ongoing 6-yr investigation into lottery corruption by GroundUp has exposed, hijacked non-profit organisations (NPOs) or new shelf non-profit companies (NPCs) without monetary track data have been used to apply for funding.
In a few circumstances, Practically identical economical statements have been produced for unrelated organisations, usually with just the names in the organisations improved, GroundUp’s investigation identified.
Documents submitted by genuine NPCs for unsuccessful grant applications were being generally used by new or hijacked NPCs and NPOs to submit an application for funding. The small print and files in the unsuccessful applicants were provided by senior Lottery officials to the dodgy applicants.
With cursory or - normally - no verification, these dodgy applicants have been awarded millions of rands in grants. In some cases added tranches of funds ended up paid out without the need of A great deal checking about the development of tasks.
The overwhelming majority of these grants ended up created by using proactive funding, which was at the heart in the looting on the lottery. Proactive funding permitted the Minister of Trade, Sector and Competitors, or the NLC together with its board, to recognize will cause to fund with no very first requiring an application. This was stopped whenever a new NLC board was appointed.
R2-billion in grants less than investigation
SIU head Advocate Andy Mothibi explained the SIU was presently investigating grants valued at around R2-billion, plus the unit was nevertheless consistently getting suggestion-offs about extra corruption.
He advised MPs which the SIU’s investigation were damaged into 3 phases: the main, which has been finalised, probed dodgy grants amounting to R280-million, and the next, also done, involved R247-million. From the 3rd section, as a result of be finalised at the end of the year, the SIU is investigating grants valued at Virtually R906-million, involving 40 NPOs and NPCs, Mothibi stated.
He stated that the SIU would utilize “soon” for your Presidential Proclamation, originally granted in Oct 2020 to investigate corruption involving lottery grants, to become extended to include procurement from the NLC.
The SIU investigation had to this point resulted in 13 disciplinary referrals to your NLC, and administrative referrals to SARS and the businesses and Mental Attributes Fee to blacklist persons implicated in the looting. Issues involving two persons were referred towards the Legal Follow Council as well as SA Institute of Chartered Accountants.
The SIU experienced noticed a number of trends under the earlier NLC board and government - lots of whom have already been implicated in looting - Mothibi told MPs.
This integrated a “craze of collusion in between NLC officials and NPOs and NPCs”, “the hijacking of NPOs and NPCs” and “typical maladministration while in the acceptance of grants,” he explained.
Sluggish development because of the NPA
The SIU has frozen houses, properties, autos together with other assets really worth tens of millions which were bought with lottery cash, but MPs expressed concern at sluggish progress in prosecuting Individuals associated with the looting. (The SIU is mandated only to Get better property acquired with stolen state funds and doesn't have prosecuting powers).
When the SIU has referred 15 issues for the NPA, thus far only two folks have been brought prior to a court. Two Gentlemen appeared in court docket in Kimberley recently in reference to misappropriated cash collected for your task to fight gender-centered violence.
In August 2022 Christopher Tshivule was sentenced to eight several years in prison for his part in a very R1.5-million lottery grant fraud. Costs against two men and women charged with him, who the SIU has referred to as “kingpins” within the corruption that confused the NLC, were dropped.
Important-Basic Mmeli Makinyane, the performing 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 court docket and two are already sent on the NPA for a choice to prosecute. A further 5 instances are being investigated from the SAPS detective and forensic providers, he claimed.
Detailing the reasons for the hold off in prosecutions, NPA Deputy National Director Rodney de Kock explained Portion of The main reason was which the Hawks needed to do even more investigations after they been given dossiers from your SIU.
“In essence, the investigations undertaken through the SIU tend not to satisfy criminal requirements for prosecutions.”
As a result, the NPA had to operate with investigators in the DPCI (the Hawks) and SAPS to perform felony investigations and make sure the proof meets criminal prosecution requirements, he stated, including: “Having said that, the get the job done on the SIU is very important and contributes significantly to this method.”
De Kock mentioned which the SIU’s investigation “typically results in a number of referrals. The referrals may finally result in a single docket and just one court docket case.”
He stated that 12 matters, which happen to be “about eighty five% comprehensive”, have been remaining jointly investigated via the Hawks along with the SIU’s Specialised Economic Operations Device. (Many of these instances, 7 of which ended up lodged in 2020, require former NLC Main functioning officer Phillemon Letwaba, who resigned underneath a cloud in 2022, and Pretoria attorney Leslie Ramulifho.)
De Kock mentioned the NPA confronted numerous “difficulties” in prosecuting cases. These, he claimed, integrated
the lapse of time concerning once the offences ended up committed as well as issuing from the Presidential Proclamation on 1 November 2020;
“unavailability of witnesses and/or documentary evidence” (Previously this 12 months, the SIU instructed the committee that essential paperwork essential in a few prosecutions had been deleted through the NLC Laptop or computer system or experienced absent missing from Metrofile, a warehouse exactly where copies of files are archived and stored);
The reality that some implicated individuals remain employed by NLC; and
A challenge to the legality of your Presidential Proclamation by previous NLC chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda.
“The NPA is committed to guaranteeing finalisation in these matters. To this conclusion, a group of focused prosecutors is allotted to supervise all NLC issues at present underneath investigation,” de Kock reported. “Issues are dealt with being a precedence. At the time [the] investigations are completed, the NPA can make a decision.”
What the companies say (or don’t)
GroundUp was only capable to get remark from on the list of 5 firms accused because of the SIU in Parliament of manufacturing fraudulent annual monetary statements,TTP Consulting.
Aubrey Moeng, one of TTP’s two administrators, mentioned in an e mail in response to questions: “As a consequence of consumer confidentiality, we need to advise that TTP Consulting just isn't ready to disclose customers’ fiscal private info with the general public or media … with no consent with the customer or simply a lawful reason.”
The organization is actually a “companion” of a number of state entities, including SARS and the CIPC, Based on its website.
Neither of The 2 directors of Dzata Accountants, who are both of those stated as inactive to the CIPC register of companies, responded to emailed issues. The business continues to be deregistered by the CIPC for failing to submit economical statements due to the fact 2021.
The sole director of Mageba Ntuli Buying and selling and Consulting Assistance, Patrick Zulu, died a few many years in the past, In keeping with Formal documents. The corporation was deregistered via the CIPC for failing to post economical statements considering the fact that 2021.
Matamela Magodi, the only real director of Magodi Consultants, didn't respond to inquiries emailed to him.
GroundUp was unable to come across any listing for Tafta Consulting and Accounting Products and services While using the CIPC. We ended up also unable to trace any of the company’s directors to request comment.