Minister Tau must launch independent probe into Lotto tender as scandal deepens
Minister Parks Tau did not properly oversee the appointment of Sizekhaya Holdings as the new Lottery Operator, says the writer.
Image: File
The DA calls for a comprehensive and independent investigation into the awarding of the fourth national lottery licence to Sizekhaya Holdings. The investigation must be fully independent, without any ANC political influence.
The revelations and scandals around the new Lottery Operator licence continue to deepen, tied to the family of ANC Deputy President Paul Mashatile.
The DA is appalled to note that a member of the evaluation committee that ultimately chose Sizekhaya Holdings was entertained and hosted in his capacity at the 25th anniversary Golf Day of Goldrush, which owns 50% of Sizekhaya, mere months before he was involved in evaluating the company's bid for the tender.
This appears to be another blatant example of further corruption of the legitimacy of the process to select Sizekhaya Holdings.
The conflicts of interest now span both the bid evaluation committee and the political proximity of the winning bidder itself. Increasingly, the picture is emerging of a completely manufactured outcome to benefit the family of ANC Deputy President Paul Mashatile.
The link to Mashatile is undeniable. Sizekhaya Holdings is part-owned by Bellamont Gaming, a company founded and directed by Deputy President Paul Mashatile's sister-in-law, Khumo Bogatsu, and close associate, Moses Tembe (who is also the chairman of Sizekhaya).
Minister Tau's effective admission that he failed to properly oversee the process, allowing the ties between Sizekhaya and Deputy President Paul Mashatile's family to slip through, suggests the due diligence process was either incomplete or deliberately overlooked.
Put simply, Minister Parks Tau did not properly oversee the appointment of Sizekhaya Holdings as the new Lottery Operator, allowing a glaring and scandalous conflict of interest with the Deputy President's family to get through. This demands answers and transparency.
The DA's call for a full-scale independent investigation into this scandal has been made by way of a letter to Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition, Parks Tau.
The least that Minister Tau can do, in the face of such obvious failures and ANC cronyism, is to establish an independent investigation.
The DA is calling for this independent investigation to determine whether any of the evaluation, adjudication, or quality assurance committees were aware of these connections, and whether the failure to disclose the links was due to insufficient rigour or simple impropriety.
The independent investigation must assess wilful or negligent conduct, through political influence during the evaluation and adjudication process, for political accountability to follow.
The DA will get to the bottom of how and why the ANC Deputy President's family is now so deeply involved in this valuable deal, though an effective admission of failure by an ANC Minister.
Toby Chance MP
DA Spokesperson on Trade, Industry & Competition
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