Former NLC secretary hit with second punitive costs ruling
Nompumelelo Nene was accused of masterminding the removal of grant beneficiary records from the National Lotteries Commission’s system.
South Africa.- A Gauteng High Court judge has ordered Nompumelelo Nene, former National Lotteries Commission (NLC) Company Secretary, to personally pay punitive legal costs for the second time in her legal fight over alleged corruption. On September 4 2025, Judge Jan Swanepoel ruled against Nene’s attempt to challenge an Auditor-General report exposing financial irregularities during her tenure.
Nene, a senior corporate lawyer, was suspended in November 2022 following a report that exposed questionable expenditure during her tenure in 2019/20 and 2020/21, including unauthorised payments for services such as media, accounting, auditing and legal fees totalling hundreds of millions of rands. More particularly, Nene was accused of masterminding the removal of grant beneficiary records from the National Lotteries Commission’s system, which led to the loss of key documents potentially linked to corruption in high-value lottery-funded initiatives.
Facing 145 misconduct charges, including failing to maintain financial controls and misusing NLC assets, Nene launched multiple court cases to try to clear her name and reputation. In March 2024, she asked the Johannesburg High Court to halt her disciplinary hearing. Judge Stuart Wilson threw out the case, labelling it ‘hopeless’ and imposed punitive costs on Nene, citing her legal background as a reason she ought to have known better than to pursue such a claim.
Later that same year, Nene tried to overturn the Auditor-General’s report in Pretoria, requesting access to documents in a move that acting Judge Le Grange called a “fishing expedition”. That case failed, too.
This latest filing seemed to be a strategic delay, coming on the heels of her previous attempt to postpone the disciplinary hearing. Nene resigned in January 2025, before the hearing, earning nearly R6 million during her two-year suspension. The NLC called her resignation an evasion of accountability, however, Nene denied the allegations, claiming it was “involuntary” due to pressure.
After resigning, Nene ignored inquiries from the Auditor-General about continuing the review. In April, she withdrew the case without offering to cover costs, forcing the Auditor-General and NLC to file responses and incur more expenses. Nene attempted to pass on the costs to an NLC insurer, but Swanepoel ruled that the Auditor-General and NLC could seek reimbursement directly from her.
The Judge said: “If [Nene] is able to secure an indemnification from the insurer, that is to her benefit, but the Auditor-General and the NLC are entitled to pursue them personally from her.”
