Former National Lotteries Commission (NLC) chair Alfred Nevhutanda has filed his final affidavit in his legal challenge to review and set aside President Cyril Ramaphosa\u2019s authorisation of a Special Investigation Unit (SIU) probe into corruption at the commission.<\/p>\n
The application, launched in 2024, has delayed the forfeiture of millions of rands worth of assets of people implicated in the looting of lottery funds.<\/p>\n
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The matter will now be set down for argument in the High Court in Pretoria.<\/p>\n
In his opposing affidavit, Ramaphosa stood firm on the legality of authorising the investigation in 2020 into \u201cmaladministration\u201d at the NLC from January 2014 to October 2020.<\/p>\n
The probe has led to the preservation of assets valued at R344 million, including a R27 million Pretoria mansion owned by Nevhutanda and allegedly bought with lottery grants.<\/p>\n
\nNevhutanda argues that the proclamation was unlawful because the NLC is not an organ of state and does not deal with public money, which he says are prerequisites under the SIU Act.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
He says the proclamation is also too broad, giving the SIU license to \u201cgo on a fishing expedition, permitting it to turn over any stone to its heart\u2019s content\u201d.<\/p>\n
Ramaphosa says there is no legal basis for Nevhutanda\u2019s objections and the review is out of time.<\/p>\n
The SIU argues that Nevhutanda\u2019s true motive is to get back assets that have been preserved, prevent their forfeiture to the state, and avoid the consequences of his alleged crimes.<\/p>\n
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How lottery money funded mansions for high flyers
NPA under pressure to bring lottery looters to court<\/p>\nIn his replying affidavit, Nevhutanda says a perusal of the opposing affidavits did not show any evidence to refute his contention that Ramaphosa acted \u201cirrationally\u201d when he signed what he calls a \u201cvague, broad and unlimited\u201d proclamation. This, he says, is enough on its own for it to be set aside by the court.<\/p>\n
\u201cGiven the intrusion into the personal rights of the vast number of grant recipients [14 627 over the relevant six years], the prejudice which stands to follow is manifest.\u201d<\/p>\n
He maintains that the distributing agencies, not the NLC board, awarded grant funding, and that the SIU has provided no evidence that the agencies contravened the Lotteries Act or engaged in \u201cuntoward conduct\u201d. He says the SIU has made only \u201csweeping statements\u201d.<\/p>\n
Public money dispute<\/strong><\/p>\n
Nevhuntanda is persisting with his claim that the SIU was only permitted to investigate malpractice involving public money.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf one has regard to the SIU affidavit, it is evidently in pursuit of money which was paid, by the grantees, to third parties. The money in the hands of the grantees does not constitute public money,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
He adds that while unlawfulness can taint all subsequent transactions, the SIU has failed to show any unlawfulness within the distributing agencies.<\/p>\n
\nRegarding the alleged lateness of his application, he says he was \u201ctaken aback\u201d that he and the board had not been informed of the SIU investigation.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
He says the Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition at the time had \u201cbeen very much antagonistic towards the board\u201d and \u201cthere also appeared to have been a concerted media effort to bad-mouth the business of grant funding\u201d.<\/p>\n
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He says he had no problem with the investigation. He ran a \u201ctight ship\u201d but there was also room for improvement.<\/p>\n
\u201cOver time, however, my attitude slowly but surely changed. The personal attack on me, via the courts, the Special Tribunal and the media, was intense, but I endured it in the spirit that the highest tree catches the wind.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Ex lottery board member to pay back R21m in stolen grant funds<\/div>\nNPA missing in action on lottery corruption<\/div>\nNevhuntanda says he had not anticipated that service providers to the NLC would be targeted and that people were not prepared to stand up to the SIU.<\/p>\n
He says he \u201ccame to seriously consider the possibility of the NLC being the SIU\u2019s \u2018cash cow’\u201d.<\/p>\n
\nHe says he wished to live a \u201cmore subdued life\u201d but now \u201csingle-handedly needs to stand up against the President\u201d and state establishments, who litigate \u201cfunded by the state\u201d.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
\u201cI came to the conclusion that the on-going SIU investigation is a travesty of justice and I had to step forward.\u201d<\/p>\n
The parties will now file heads of argument before approaching the court for a hearing date.<\/p>\n
\u00a9 2025 GroundUp. This article was first published\u00a0here.<\/p>\n
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