[ad_1]
President Cyril Ramaphosa.
- The president has signed a proclamation authorizing the SIU to investigate alleged corruption in the National Lottery Commission.
- It comes shortly after the establishment of a Hawks task force to investigate the NLC.
- The proclamation allows the State to recover the economic losses caused by acts of corruption, fraud and mismanagement.
President Cyril Ramaphosa signed a proclamation authorizing the Special Investigation Unit (SIU) to investigate alleged corruption and mismanagement involving the National Lottery Commission (NLC).
Signed by the President on October 20, it entered into force when it was published in the Official Government Gazette on Friday, November 6.
The main mandate of the Law of the Special Investigation Unit and the Special Courts is to recover and prevent the state’s financial losses caused by acts of corruption, fraud and mismanagement.
Ramophosa’s decision to involve the SIU comes in the wake of ongoing reports of corruption involving lottery donations amounting to hundreds of millions of rand, and mounting political pressure and calls from civil society for the government to take measurements.
READ | National Lottery Commission: Appeal to the board amid allegations of corruption
The proclamation covers crimes “that occurred between January 1, 2014 and the date of publication of this Proclamation, or that occurred before January 1, 2014.” It also covers any crime after the date of its publication that is “relevant, related, incidental or auxiliary to the issues … or that involves the same persons, entities or contracts investigated under the authority of this Proclamation.”
Regarding Friday’s proclamation, Ramaphosa has authorized the SIU to investigate:
a) serious mismanagement in relation to the affairs of the NLC;
(b) improper or illegal conduct on the part of NLC employees or officials;
(c) illegal appropriation or spending of money or public property;
(d) illegal, irregular or unapproved acquisitive acts, transactions, measures or practices that affect state property;
(e) willful or negligent loss of public money or damage to public property;
(f) infractions in terms of the Law of Prevention and Fight against Corrupt Activities; Y
(g) illicit or improper conduct of any person, which has caused or may cause serious damage to the interests of the public – “or any category thereof”.
As an independent statutory unit, the SIU is accountable to Parliament and the President. He has powers to subpoena, search, seize and question witnesses under oath. The unit is also empowered to “take civil actions to correct any irregularities it discovers in its investigations.”
READ HERE | Investigation of the National Lottery Commission: witness cars in the case of corruption ‘set on fire’
When it discovers criminal conduct, the SIU can cooperate with the Hawks and the National Tax Authority (NPA) “to ensure that there is an effective investigation and prosecution.”
The SIU also works closely with the NPA’s Asset Forfeiture Unit (AFU) “where its powers are most appropriate or effective in recovering proceeds of crime.”
The proclamation comes on the heels of the recent formation of a Hawks task force to investigate Lottery corruption.
The Hawks, the most commonly used name for the Directorate of Investigation of Priority Crimes, began their investigation into the Lottery’s corruption after receiving a complaint from the Department of Commerce, Industry and Competition (DTIC) in September, according to a spokesman for the Hawks, Colonel Katlego Mogale.
All criminal complaints related to Lottery corruption that have been filed with the police are now being consolidated for the task force to investigate, he said.
READ ALSO | Police investigate 4 alleged corrupt projects in the lottery commission, but the chairman of the board will not resign
Independent investigators appointed by the DTIC have also turned over dossiers with their research results to three more multi-million rand Lottery-funded projects. They had previously turned over a file on Denzhe Primary Care to the Hawks for investigation. The latest dossiers involve Zibsimansi and Life to Impact in the 21st Century. The department has yet to make a decision on filing criminal complaints, as it has done in Denzhe’s case.
Independent researchers are still investigating multi-million dollar grants for various other organizations.
Corruption Watch, which has been outspoken about lottery corruption and is overseeing the appointment of a new NLC board chairman, welcomed the proclamation.
Karam Singh, head of investigations and legal affairs at Corruption Watch, said: “We are very happy to see a proclamation on the NLC matter. It is something we have traced back given the stories of many years of alleged corruption. We hope that the investigation can address the serious allegations of financial wrongdoing as reported. There are systemic political patronage issues revolving around the NLC and hopefully a focused investigation will lead to accountability for this. “
