Leaked report exposes abuse of lottery income paid out to minstrel team
Leaked report exposes abuse of lottery income paid out to minstrel team
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Minstrels conduct in Athlone on two January 2017. Archive Picture: Ashraf Hendricks
A report by attorneys Dabishi Nthambeleni right into a R27.3-million grant from the Countrywide Lotteries Commission into the Cape Town Minstrel Carnival Affiliation (CTMCA) to get a minstrels museum has discovered no evidence that a museum ever existed.
The investigators located which the CTMCA didn't use the R5-million allotted to buy or develop a museum.
In addition they identified which the CTMCA only bought land truly worth R1.seven-million, not R5-million as allotted.
They uncovered the CTMCA made use of funds with the Lottery to purchase workshop machines from one among its individual administrators, Richard “Pot” Stemmet.
A leaked forensic report reveals how numerous rand granted to the Cape Town Minstrel Carnival Association (CTMCA) through the National Lotteries Commission (NLC) to setup a museum to celebrate the town’s rich minstrel history went astray. The museum was never ever designed.
The details with the abuse of many rands of Lottery funds for the museum that never was are unveiled within an investigative report commissioned from the NLC in 2021.
The museum grant was Element of in excess of R64-million in Lottery cash allocated into the CTMCA in between 2003 and 2017.
The initial part of the investigation, by law agency Dabishi Nthambeleni, was performed amongst September 2020 and January 2021 and focused on a R27.three-million grant towards the CTMCA in 2014, which integrated funding for that museum. The authorised spending budget for your museum was much more than R12.eight-million, with R5-million of that allotted for your setting up to accommodate the museum.
Examine the report (PDF, 7MB)
The NLC tasked Dabishi Nthambeleni to investigate the acquisition of the constructing with the museum and if the museum “essentially existed”.
The agency was also instructed to investigate
the acquisition with Lottery money of two cars – a sixty-seater bus as well as a 23-seater bus – for R2.4-million; and
various devices “procured for that production from the costumes and hats” for that minstrels carnival, for R5.four-million.
At enough time, convicted legal Richard “Pot” Stemmet was director of your CTMCA. He was appointed a director of your CTMCA in September 1996. He resigned in December 2016 but his wife Zainonesa and daughter Raziah continued as two of a number of administrators from the organisation. Stemmet was reappointed as being a director in May perhaps 2021.
The investigation followed comprehensive reporting by GroundUp regarding the numerous rands of Lottery funding allotted to your CTMCA (see in this article, here and in this article) and how the cash probably served finance the ANC’s 2014 election marketing campaign inside the Western Cape, led by at the time by Marius Fransman.
The setting up on the right was the supposed internet site of the minstrels’ museum, in the middle of an industrial location in Primrose Park, Cape Town. Image: Raymond Joseph
In response to a Parliamentary dilemma, previous NLC Commissioner Thabang Mampane stated grants to three CTMCA “jobs” - including the museum - in between 2012 and 2015. All three jobs had been concluded, she told MPs.
Although the investigators located no evidence that a museum had at any time existed.
Initially the museum was as a result of open in rented premises in Crete Highway, Wetton. A photograph acquired by GroundUp of your intended Wetton museum demonstrates a espresso store with a few musical devices and minstrel costumes and collages of pictures haphazardly hung to the partitions, along with a model ship on its plinth inside a corner.
In its report, Dabishi Nthambeleni claimed it had been “not in a position” to confirm if a museum had at any time operated from these premises.
Stemmet told the investigators the museum were moved since they could now not pay for the hire of R100,000 per month. He reported the CTMCA had obtained home for R1.7-million in Schaapkraal for your museum, but couldn't get it rezoned, and were offered for a similar value. Schaapkraal is inside a peri-city region considerably from town.
Due to this fact, the museum had been moved to a whole new site in Primrose Park in February 2021, Stemmet instructed the Dabishi Nthambeleni investigators. But immediately after traveling to the premises, which might be in an industrial space, the investigators reported they doubted irrespective of whether a suitable museum existed there. Photos attached to your report present a mishmash of randomly exhibited uniforms, musical instruments and assorted minstrel paraphernalia nailed for the wall, shown on tables and distribute out on the floor, with no explanation.
“There is a negligible degree of objects at the museum [that] by no means represent the a lot more than a hundred-calendar year background on the Cape City Carnival, the investigators reported, introducing that there was “no signage outside the premises indicating that they housed a museum and … normally, the museum isn't going to seem being open to the general public.”
The CTMCA had breached the grant agreement, Dabishi Nthambeleni mentioned, by shifting the location from the museum to an alternate place without having notifying the NLC.
The Schaapkraal property, on which no museum was ever constructed. Image: Raymond Joseph
Buses
Stemmet advised the investigators which the CTMCA had to move in the rented Crete Highway premises as it had operate up a R4-million financial debt with the City of Cape Town and was scared its tools will be hooked up.
“As a result of lawful battles plus the debts, the organisation had to move its property from 5 Crete Street to avoid the sheriff from attaching the property on the organisation,” Stemmet explained to the investigators.
Sedrick Soeker, the current director on the CTMCA, instructed them that the two buses bought with lottery money had been saved inside a mystery locale “hidden from your Sheriff”. Although the investigators claimed they were being not able to confirm that any buses had ever been purchased.
Stemmet also verified the buses had been concealed to prevent them becoming seized. But when the investigators questioned to generally be taken to the place where the buses ended up stored, he explained to them that “the proprietor of The trick spot wasn't available to open the premises for us”.
“The CTMCA couldn't offer proof of payment for two autos that it allegedly ordered with grant cash,” the investigators noted.
Soeker also instructed them the Schaapkraal residence had been sold because of the financial debt.
“Mr Soeker stated that according to his knowing, a result of the financial debt owed to the town of Cape City, the CTMCA made a decision It might be very best to provide their [Schaapkraal] residence … and to also to hide the property from the CTMCA to stay away from the sheriff from attaching the property.”
JP Smith, Cape City’s mayco member for security and protection, has Earlier explained to GroundUp which the CTMCA “threw revenue absent” on litigation with town.
“Each year like clockwork, as we method the top of the calendar year, the CTMCA picks a lawful battle with the City, above permits or something else. We never ever initiate it. They retain throwing dollars away on vexatious litigation that they lose and also have fees awarded towards them. This really is solely self-inflicted,” he claimed.
Soeker informed the Dabishi Nthambeleni investigators that the main purpose players on issues of Lottery funding ended up Stemmet and previous CTMCA board member Kevin Momberg, “who have been in control of all of the admin, finances and functioning ตรวจ สลาก the CTMCA.” The investigators stated they had been struggling to Make contact with Momberg.
Hats
During their “investigation in loco” with the Primrose Park premises, the investigators “found several equipment, some in excellent ailment, some in terrible situation and some that looked rusty and intensely previous”. Stemmet explained to the investigators that there was also an off-website storage facility the place “instruments and many equipment” were stored.
“We asked him to consider us to the facility but he was evasive to our request.”
According to photographs and invoices in GroundUp’s possession, some, Otherwise all, with the merchandise look like gear which was illegally removed from the CTMCA’s preceding premises. Stemmet is going through costs for this removing.
According to the last development report submitted to your NLC via the CTMCA, the machinery was ordered from Martin-Conne Milliners, an organization through which Stemmet, his wife and his daughter have been directors at time.
The investigators identified this “alarming”.
“Through the CIPC research of Martin-Conne Milliners as well as invoices submitted, we Take note the next alarming obtaining: Mr Stemmet himself is actually a director of Martin-Conne Milliners. The registered address of the corporate is five Crete Road, Wetton, Cape Town, the same handle on which the museum was intended to be built and/or transformed,” they claimed.
An audit by accountants Kopano Integrated, hooked up for the investigative report, recorded which the CTMCA was in the process of paying for “machinery, plant and stock” valued at R8.one-million from Stalph 164 CC, investing as Martin-Conne Milliners. Staph 164 was a detailed Company of which Stemmet was one of the directors.
In line with Dabishi Nthambeleni, the corporate has compensated R1.2-million being a deposit, indicating R6.nine-million remains to be owed, however there is no payment day set for when this should be compensated.
The Kopano audit along with the close connection amongst the companies “point out to us that there is ‘foul Enjoy’ involved in the purchase with the equipment in the museum workshop”, the investigators claimed within the report.
“We find that it is very probable that CTMCA applied the funding from the NLC to ‘refund’ among its key administrators for that assets at a higher overpriced price than the actual cost and value of the assets and/or equipment.”
Tips
Dabishi Nthambeleni concluded that it had been unable to determine how the grant into the CTMCA were put in.
“Actually, a detailed report on how the funding with the NLC was made use of, can be extremely hard as being the CTMCA does not have any receipts, or evidence of payments to confirm the amounts spent on Each individual item it requested funding for. The interim report and final report with the CTMCA only attach invoices,” Dabishi Nthambeleni concluded.
The investigators uncovered that the NLC had not executed a site take a look at before approving the grant. But this was not regular follow at some time they usually found no proof of carelessness by NLC staff members.
At enough time, the NLC’s policies did not call for funded organisations to submit evidence of payment with interim reports, they identified. This meant which the CTMCA was ready to get a next tranche of funding without the need to supply proof that it had utilised the initial tranche for its supposed objective.
Following the appointment of a completely new board, commissioner and senior government staff, the NLC has tightened up on these together with other problems.
Dabishi Nthambeleni advisable that
the NLC drop any future funding applications in the CTMCA;
the CTMCA and any associates who have been involved with the grant be subjected on the NLC’s “delinquency” system;
the NLC open up a legal situation of fraud with SAPS or even the Hawks for allegations of fraud; and
the NLC commence the entire process of recovering the misappropriated resources.
But, rather than act over the report’s suggestions, the NLC – beneath its prior administration – selected to suppress it, as it experienced accomplished With all the prior stories into corruption it experienced commissioned.
GroundUp sent queries to Stemmet and Soeker via SMS, and requested for e mail addresses to send the queries by e mail far too. But no reaction were gained at some time of publication.
The minstrel “museum” in Crete Highway, Wetton. Image: Raymond Joseph