Leaked report exposes abuse of lottery funds paid to minstrel group

Leaked report exposes abuse of lottery funds paid to minstrel group

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Minstrels conduct in Athlone on two January 2017. Archive Photograph: Ashraf Hendricks

A report by Lawyers Dabishi Nthambeleni into a R27.3-million grant with the Countrywide Lotteries Fee to your Cape Town Minstrel Carnival Association (CTMCA) to get a minstrels museum has discovered no proof that a museum ever existed.
The investigators located the CTMCA didn't utilize the R5-million allocated to purchase or create a museum.
Additionally they discovered that the CTMCA only purchased land worth R1.seven-million, not R5-million as allotted.
They located the CTMCA utilized resources within the Lottery to acquire workshop tools from among its personal administrators, Richard “Pot” Stemmet.
A leaked forensic report reveals how many rand granted on the Cape Town Minstrel Carnival Affiliation (CTMCA) with the National Lotteries Fee (NLC) to arrange a museum to rejoice the city’s loaded minstrel historical past went astray. The museum was never ever created.

The small print with the abuse of an incredible number of rands of Lottery resources for any museum that hardly ever was are disclosed within an investigative report commissioned through the NLC in 2021.

The museum grant was Component of in excess of R64-million in Lottery cash allocated to the CTMCA among 2003 and 2017.

The very first part of the investigation, by legislation agency Dabishi Nthambeleni, was performed concerning September 2020 and January 2021 and focused on a R27.3-million grant into the CTMCA in 2014, which incorporated funding with the museum. The accepted spending plan for the museum was in excess of R12.eight-million, with R5-million of that allocated for any setting up to house the museum.

Read through the report (PDF, 7MB)

The NLC tasked Dabishi Nthambeleni to analyze the acquisition of the constructing to the museum and whether the museum “actually existed”.

The organization was also instructed to research

the purchase with Lottery funds of two vehicles – a sixty-seater bus plus a 23-seater bus – for R2.4-million; and
various devices “obtained for the production of the costumes and hats” for that minstrels carnival, for R5.4-million.
At time, convicted criminal Richard “Pot” Stemmet was director in the CTMCA. He was appointed a director on the CTMCA in September 1996. He resigned in December 2016 but his spouse Zainonesa and daughter Raziah continued as two of many administrators with the organisation. Stemmet was reappointed for a director in May possibly 2021.

The investigation followed extensive reporting by GroundUp with regard to the a lot of rands of Lottery funding allocated towards the CTMCA (see below, below and right here) and the best way the money most likely aided finance the ANC’s 2014 election campaign from the Western Cape, led by at the time by Marius Fransman.



The creating on the appropriate was the intended web-site of your minstrels’ museum, in the middle of an industrial area in Primrose Park, Cape City. Picture: Raymond Joseph

In response to the Parliamentary problem, former NLC Commissioner Thabang Mampane outlined grants to 3 CTMCA “assignments” - such as the museum - amongst 2012 and 2015. All a few initiatives had been concluded, she informed MPs.

Though the investigators identified no evidence that a museum experienced ever existed.

To start with the museum was because of open in rented premises in Crete Road, Wetton. A photo received by GroundUp with the meant Wetton museum reveals a espresso store with a few musical instruments and minstrel costumes and collages of pictures haphazardly hung within the walls, and also a product ship on its plinth in a corner.

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

Stemmet told the investigators the museum were moved since they could no longer afford to pay for the lease of R100,000 per month. He explained the CTMCA had procured property for R1.7-million in Schaapkraal for your museum, but couldn't get it rezoned, and were marketed for the same price tag. Schaapkraal is inside a peri-urban spot considerably from the city.

Because of this, the museum were moved to a completely new spot in Primrose Park in February 2021, Stemmet informed the Dabishi Nthambeleni investigators. But immediately after visiting the premises, which happen to be within an industrial area, the investigators stated they doubted whether a proper museum existed there. Images hooked up to your report show a mishmash of randomly exhibited uniforms, musical devices and assorted minstrel paraphernalia nailed towards the wall, shown on tables and unfold out on the ground, with no explanation.

“You will find there's minimal number of items with the museum [that] on no account characterize the greater than 100-yr heritage in the Cape City Carnival, the investigators said, adding that there was “no signage outside the premises indicating which they housed a museum and … generally, the museum does not look to become open to the general public.”

The CTMCA experienced breached the grant settlement, Dabishi Nthambeleni pointed out, by transferring The situation of your museum to another site without notifying the NLC.



The Schaapkraal assets, on which no museum was ever built. Picture: Raymond Joseph

Buses
Stemmet told the investigators the CTMCA experienced to maneuver from the rented Crete Road premises since it had run up a R4-million debt with the City of Cape Town and was scared its tools can be connected.

“Mainly because of the lawful battles as well as debts, the organisation experienced to move its house from 5 Crete Road to steer clear of the sheriff from attaching the residence with the organisation,” Stemmet instructed the investigators.

Sedrick Soeker, The present director from the CTMCA, advised them the two buses bought with lottery funds have been stored in a very key area “concealed through the Sheriff”. Even so the investigators said they have been not able to verify that any buses experienced ever been acquired.

Stemmet also confirmed that the buses were hidden to stop them becoming seized. But if the investigators asked to get taken towards the position exactly where the buses were being stored, he explained to them that “the owner of The trick place wasn't available to open the premises for us”.

“The CTMCA could not provide proof of payment for two motor vehicles that it allegedly obtained with grant revenue,” the investigators reported.

Soeker also informed them the Schaapkraal home had been marketed due to debt.

“Mr Soeker defined that In keeping with his understanding, as a result of debt owed to town of Cape City, the CTMCA resolved It will be ideal to market their [Schaapkraal] home … also to also to hide the property from the CTMCA to steer clear of the sheriff from attaching the house.”

JP Smith, Cape City’s mayco member for safety and safety, has Beforehand advised GroundUp the CTMCA “threw money absent” on litigation with the City.

“Each and every year like clockwork, as we solution the end on the 12 months, the CTMCA picks a authorized combat with the town, around permits or something else. We never initiate it. They hold throwing revenue away on vexatious litigation that they shed and have prices awarded from them. This is certainly entirely self-inflicted,” he claimed.

Soeker told the Dabishi Nthambeleni investigators that the main function players on problems with Lottery funding were being Stemmet and former CTMCA board member Kevin Momberg, “who ended up in command of all the admin, finances and managing hihuay the CTMCA.” The investigators explained they were struggling to Get in touch with Momberg.

Hats
Through their “investigation in loco” within the Primrose Park premises, the investigators “located various machines, some in fantastic condition, some in undesirable affliction and many that seemed rusty and very old”. Stemmet told the investigators that there was also an off-website storage facility in which “devices and many machinery” had been kept.

“We requested him to get us to the facility but he was evasive to our ask for.”

Based upon pics and invoices in GroundUp’s possession, some, if not all, of the goods appear to be devices that was illegally removed from the CTMCA’s previous premises. Stemmet is experiencing charges for this removal.

Based on the closing development report submitted to the NLC through the CTMCA, the machinery was acquired from Martin-Conne Milliners, a corporation in which Stemmet, his wife and his daughter had been directors at some time.

The investigators identified this “alarming”.

“Through the CIPC lookup of Martin-Conne Milliners plus the invoices submitted, we note the subsequent alarming obtaining: Mr Stemmet himself is often a director of Martin-Conne Milliners. The registered deal with of the organization is five Crete Road, Wetton, Cape City, the exact same address on which the museum was meant to be constructed and/or transformed,” they described.

An audit by accountants Kopano Incorporated, connected towards the investigative report, recorded the CTMCA was in the entire process of obtaining “equipment, plant and inventory” valued at R8.one-million from Stalph 164 CC, buying and selling as Martin-Conne Milliners. Staph 164 was an in depth corporation of which Stemmet was one among the directors.

In keeping with Dabishi Nthambeleni, the company has paid R1.two-million to be a deposit, which means R6.9-million remains owed, although there's no payment date established for when this must be compensated.

The Kopano audit as well as near website link in between the businesses “show to us that there's ‘foul Engage in’ involved in the purchase of your machinery of the museum workshop”, the investigators claimed inside the report.

“We find that it's extremely possible that CTMCA made use of the funding of the NLC to ‘refund’ among its major directors for your property at a greater overpriced price than the actual price and price of the assets and/or machinery.”

Recommendations
Dabishi Nthambeleni concluded that it absolutely was unable to determine how the grant on the CTMCA were expended.

“Actually, a detailed report on how the funding of the NLC was used, could well be difficult because the CTMCA doesn't have any receipts, or evidence of payments to verify the quantities spent on each merchandise it asked for funding for. The interim report and last report of your CTMCA only attach invoices,” Dabishi Nthambeleni concluded.

The investigators uncovered that the NLC had not carried out a web-site stop by prior to approving the grant. But this wasn't conventional observe at some time plus they observed no evidence of negligence by NLC workforce.

At enough time, the NLC’s policies did not require funded organisations to post proof of payment with interim experiences, they pointed out. This intended that the CTMCA was ready to receive a 2nd tranche of funding without needing to provide proof that it experienced utilized the main tranche for its intended function.

Next the appointment of a whole new board, commissioner and senior govt group, the NLC has tightened up on these and various concerns.

Dabishi Nthambeleni proposed that

the NLC drop any potential funding programs from your CTMCA;
the CTMCA and any associates who had been involved in the grant be subjected towards the NLC’s “delinquency” method;
the NLC open up a felony situation of fraud with SAPS or the Hawks for allegations of fraud; and
the NLC begin the whole process of recovering the misappropriated money.
But, instead of act to the report’s recommendations, the NLC – underneath its preceding administration – selected to suppress it, as it had done While using the preceding reports into corruption it had commissioned.

GroundUp sent issues to Stemmet and Soeker by way of SMS, and requested for electronic mail addresses to send the queries by e-mail far too. But no reaction had been acquired at time of publication.



The minstrel “museum” in Crete Street, Wetton. Photo: Raymond Joseph