South Africa strengthens lottery grant oversight as tribunal orders repayment of unlawful US$223,000 grant
Special Tribunal rules National Lotteries Commission grant was unlawfully awarded after SIU investigation uncovered fraudulent misrepresentations and diversion of funds.
South Africa.- South Africa strengthened lottery grant oversight after the Special Tribunal ordered the repayment of an unlawful R4m (US$223,000) National Lotteries Commission (NLC) grant following a Special Investigating Unit (SIU) investigation. The judgement reinforces safeguards designed to ensure NLC funding reaches legitimate public benefit projects.
In a judgement dated July 13 and made publicly available on the SIU website, the Special Tribunal declared the NLC’s decision to award a R4m grant to the Mshandukani Foundation unlawful, reviewed and set it aside, and ordered the repayment of the funds with interest. The SIU “welcomed the ruling” in a media statement published on July 22.
The NLC supported the SIU’s application and did not oppose the proceedings, filing an answering affidavit backing all of the relief sought by the investigating unit.
The Tribunal ordered the Mshandukani Foundation, its chairperson Pretty Shandukani, Takalani Israel Mulandana, Thambatshira Maria Khameli and Preldon Construction to repay the R4m (US$223,000) jointly and severally. The amount will accrue interest at 10.75 per cent per annum until fully repaid.
The SIU said: “The order follows an SIU investigation that uncovered serious irregularities in the award and use of the grant, revealing that the funding application was based on a project that had already been completed several years earlier and that the grant funds were diverted to entities linked to the foundation’s leadership.”
Fraudulent grant application uncovered
According to the SIU, the Mshandukani Foundation, a registered non-profit organisation (NPO), applied in February 2019 for a R4.708m (US$262,000) NLC grant to implement a community development project aimed at providing clean water to communities in the Eastern Cape. The grant was awarded in 2019, despite the borehole project cited in the application having already been completed in 2016. Signed by chairperson Pretty Shandukani, the application stated that the project would benefit 8,015 vulnerable people, create 15 part-time jobs and cover operational costs.
The SIU said former NLC chief operating officer Phillemon Letwaba, who resigned from the commission in 2022, approved the application on March 12 2019, and the commission transferred R4m (US$223,000) to the foundation’s bank account on March 20 2019.
The Tribunal found the application contained fraudulent misrepresentations that induced the NLC to approve the funding. It also accepted evidence from school principals and education officials confirming the boreholes referenced in the application had already been installed in 2016, before the grant was awarded.
The SIU found significant portions of the grant were redirected to entities linked to the foundation’s leadership. It said R3.6m (US$201,000) was paid to Preldon Construction, owned by Thambatshira Maria Khameli. From that amount, R500,000 (US$27,900) was transferred to Ironbridge Travelling Agency and Events (Pty) Ltd, owned by former NLC chief operating officer Phillemon Letwaba’s wife, Rebotile Malomane, while R550,000 (US$30,700) was paid to Mshandukani Holdings as a purported loan.
The SIU said the order forms part of its efforts to recover public funds lost through corruption and strengthen consequence management across the public sector.
