Leaked report exposes abuse of lottery money compensated to minstrel team

Leaked report exposes abuse of lottery money compensated to minstrel team

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Minstrels execute in Athlone on 2 January 2017. Archive Image: Ashraf Hendricks

A report by attorneys Dabishi Nthambeleni into a R27.three-million grant via the National Lotteries Fee towards the Cape City Minstrel Carnival Association (CTMCA) for the minstrels museum has observed no proof that a museum at any time existed.
The investigators identified that the CTMCA didn't utilize the R5-million allocated to acquire or make a museum.
In addition they identified the CTMCA only acquired land worth R1.7-million, not R5-million as allocated.
They found the CTMCA applied funds with the Lottery to acquire workshop products from considered one of its personal administrators, Richard “Pot” Stemmet.
A leaked forensic report reveals how a lot of rand granted on the Cape City Minstrel Carnival Affiliation (CTMCA) through the National Lotteries Fee (NLC) to set up a museum to rejoice town’s abundant minstrel heritage went astray. The museum was hardly ever produced.

The small print on the abuse of countless rands of Lottery cash for a museum that never ever was are uncovered within an investigative report commissioned through the NLC in 2021.

The museum grant was Portion of greater than R64-million in Lottery resources allocated to the CTMCA concerning 2003 and 2017.

The 1st Portion of the investigation, by law firm Dabishi Nthambeleni, was conducted amongst September 2020 and January 2021 and centered on a R27.3-million grant on the CTMCA in 2014, which integrated funding with the museum. The permitted spending budget to the museum was over R12.eight-million, with R5-million of that allotted for just a setting up to house the museum.

Go through the report (PDF, 7MB)

The NLC tasked Dabishi Nthambeleni to investigate the purchase of the building for your museum and whether the museum “essentially existed”.

The organization was also instructed to analyze

the purchase with Lottery money of two motor vehicles – a sixty-seater bus as well as a 23-seater bus – for R2.4-million; and
numerous equipment “bought for the producing with the costumes and hats” to the minstrels carnival, for R5.four-million.
At some time, convicted criminal Richard “Pot” Stemmet was director of your CTMCA. He was appointed a director in the CTMCA in September 1996. He resigned in December 2016 but his spouse Zainonesa and daughter Raziah continued as two of a number of directors on the organisation. Stemmet was reappointed like a director in May well 2021.

The investigation followed comprehensive reporting by GroundUp about the millions of rands of Lottery funding allotted to your CTMCA (see listed here, in this article and below) and the best way the resources in all probability helped finance the ANC’s 2014 election campaign while in the Western Cape, led by at the time by Marius Fransman.



The making on the correct was the supposed web page in the minstrels’ museum, in the course of an industrial location in Primrose Park, Cape City. Photograph: Raymond Joseph

In response into a Parliamentary dilemma, former NLC Commissioner Thabang Mampane mentioned grants to three CTMCA “assignments” - such as the museum - between 2012 and 2015. All 3 initiatives were finished, she instructed MPs.

Though the investigators located no evidence that a museum had ever existed.

To start with the museum was on account of open in rented premises in Crete Highway, Wetton. A photograph received by GroundUp on the supposed Wetton museum shows a espresso shop with some musical devices and minstrel costumes and collages of pictures haphazardly hung over the partitions, as well as a product ship on its plinth inside a corner.

In its report, Dabishi Nthambeleni claimed it was “not able” to confirm if a museum experienced at any time operated from these premises.

Stemmet informed the investigators the museum had been moved because they could now not manage the lease of R100,000 a month. He explained the CTMCA experienced purchased home for R1.7-million in Schaapkraal to the museum, but could not get it rezoned, and had been offered for a similar price. Schaapkraal is inside of a peri-city place significantly from the city.

Because of this, the museum had been moved to a fresh spot in Primrose Park in February 2021, Stemmet instructed the Dabishi Nthambeleni investigators. But following viewing the premises, which might be in an industrial location, the investigators claimed they doubted no matter if an appropriate museum existed there. Photos hooked up towards the report clearly show a mishmash of randomly exhibited uniforms, musical devices and various minstrel paraphernalia nailed towards the wall, displayed on tables and unfold out on the floor, without any explanation.

“There is a negligible amount of products in the museum [that] by no means depict the a lot more than 100-yr background from the Cape Town Carnival, the investigators claimed, incorporating that there was “no signage outside the premises indicating which they housed a museum and … frequently, the museum would not glimpse for being open up to the public.”

The CTMCA had breached the grant settlement, Dabishi Nthambeleni famous, by moving The placement with the museum to an alternative site devoid of notifying the NLC.



The Schaapkraal property, on which no museum was at any time constructed. Photo: Raymond Joseph

Buses
Stemmet told the investigators which the CTMCA had to maneuver through the rented Crete Highway premises mainly because it experienced run up a R4-million debt with the City of Cape City and was concerned its machines can be hooked up.

“A result of the authorized battles and also the debts, the organisation had to move its home from five Crete Street to stay away from the sheriff from attaching the property of your organisation,” Stemmet explained to the investigators.

Sedrick Soeker, The present director from the CTMCA, explained to them that the two buses acquired with lottery money had been stored in a secret location “concealed through the Sheriff”. Nevertheless the investigators reported they have been unable to verify that any buses experienced at any time been acquired.

Stemmet also verified the buses were hidden to prevent them being seized. But once the investigators asked to become taken for the place where by the buses were being saved, he advised them that “the proprietor of the secret location wasn't accessible to open up the premises for us”.

“The CTMCA couldn't offer evidence of payment for 2 automobiles that it allegedly procured with grant cash,” the investigators noted.

Soeker also instructed them the Schaapkraal house had been marketed due to financial debt.

“Mr Soeker defined that In accordance with his knowledge, a result of the debt owed to the City of Cape Town, the CTMCA made a decision It will be most effective to promote their [Schaapkraal] house … and also to also to hide the property with the CTMCA to stay away from the sheriff from attaching the home.”

JP Smith, Cape City’s mayco member for security and stability, has Earlier explained to GroundUp the CTMCA “threw cash absent” on litigation with town.

“On a yearly basis like clockwork, as we tactic the end of your yr, the CTMCA picks a lawful combat with town, around permits or something else. We never ever initiate it. They continue to keep throwing cash away on vexatious litigation which they lose and have expenses awarded towards them. That is totally self-inflicted,” he claimed.

Soeker advised the Dabishi Nthambeleni investigators that the principle part players on problems with Lottery funding were being Stemmet and previous CTMCA board member Kevin Momberg, “who have been accountable for all of the admin, funds and managing ผล หวย ลาว the CTMCA.” The investigators said they were not able to Get in touch with Momberg.

Hats
During their “investigation in loco” within the Primrose Park premises, the investigators “located numerous machines, some in fantastic ailment, some in negative affliction plus some that looked rusty and extremely previous”. Stemmet advised the investigators that there was also an off-web-site storage facility where “instruments and some machinery” had been stored.

“We asked him to consider us to the facility but he was evasive to our request.”

Based on photos and invoices in GroundUp’s possession, some, Otherwise all, on the products look like devices that was illegally faraway from the CTMCA’s former premises. Stemmet is facing rates for this removing.

Based on the last development report submitted towards the NLC via the CTMCA, the machinery was bought from Martin-Conne Milliners, a corporation during which Stemmet, his spouse and his daughter were directors at enough time.

The investigators found this “alarming”.

“With the CIPC look for of Martin-Conne Milliners and also the invoices submitted, we Notice the next alarming getting: Mr Stemmet himself is a director of Martin-Conne Milliners. The registered address of the organization is 5 Crete Highway, Wetton, Cape City, a similar tackle on which the museum was intended to be constructed and/or transformed,” they claimed.

An audit by accountants Kopano Integrated, hooked up to your investigative report, recorded the CTMCA was in the process of obtaining “machinery, plant and inventory” valued at R8.one-million from Stalph 164 CC, trading as Martin-Conne Milliners. Staph 164 was a detailed corporation of which Stemmet was amongst the administrators.

In keeping with Dabishi Nthambeleni, the business has compensated R1.two-million as being a deposit, indicating R6.nine-million remains owed, even though there's no payment date set for when this need to be paid out.

The Kopano audit plus the near url among the companies “suggest to us that there's ‘foul Perform’ linked to the purchase of the equipment from the museum workshop”, the investigators reported from the report.

“We find that it's remarkably probable that CTMCA applied the funding in the NLC to ‘refund’ one of its key administrators for your residence at a greater overpriced fee than the particular price and value of the home and/or machinery.”

Suggestions
Dabishi Nthambeleni concluded that it had been not able to determine how the grant towards the CTMCA had been invested.

“Actually, a detailed report on how the funding with the NLC was applied, could well be impossible as the CTMCA doesn't have any receipts, or proof of payments to confirm the quantities expended on Each individual product it requested funding for. The interim report and remaining report with the CTMCA only attach invoices,” Dabishi Nthambeleni concluded.

The investigators uncovered that the NLC experienced not conducted a site take a look at prior to approving the grant. But this was not standard follow at some time and they identified no proof of carelessness by NLC workers.

At time, the NLC’s policies didn't involve funded organisations to post evidence of payment with interim reports, they pointed out. This intended the CTMCA was able to get a next tranche of funding without the need to provide evidence that it had employed the initial tranche for its intended intent.

Next the appointment of a new board, commissioner and senior govt crew, the NLC has tightened up on these and also other difficulties.

Dabishi Nthambeleni advised that

the NLC decline any future funding apps in the CTMCA;
the CTMCA and any customers who had been involved with the grant be subjected towards the NLC’s “delinquency” course of action;
the NLC open up a legal scenario of fraud with SAPS or the Hawks for allegations of fraud; and
the NLC start out the process of recovering the misappropriated money.
But, rather than act within the report’s suggestions, the NLC – beneath its prior administration – selected to suppress it, since it had performed with the prior reports into corruption it experienced commissioned.

GroundUp sent queries to Stemmet and Soeker by way of SMS, and questioned for e-mail addresses to deliver the thoughts by e-mail too. But no response were received at some time of publication.



The minstrel “museum” in Crete Road, Wetton. Picture: Raymond Joseph

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