Lotteries Commission tells MPs it's taking stringent measures to nip corruption in the bud

CAPE TOWN - The National Lotteries Commission (NLC) says it's making progress in tightening up its systems to make it less susceptible to the fraud and corruption witnessed for more than a decade.  

Appraised on the extent of the rot on Thursday, parliamentarians on the Trade and Industry committee said the lottery has been used for crimes of greed.  

Lotteries Commissioner Jodi Scholtz said more stringent measures are now in place to monitor the projects and expenditures of grant recipients.

READ: MPs bemoan slow pace of prosecutions of those implicated in defrauding NLC

While the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) says it's investigated contracts worth R2 billion, members of Parliament (MPs) have bemoaned the only R9.5 million in cash that has been recovered.  

Property and other assets that have been frozen are valued at more than R100 million. 

The SIU said it's found accounting firms have colluded with grant recipients to produce fraudulent financial statements to dupe the commission.  

Scholtz said robust mechanisms including artificial intelligence are now being used to prevent and detect fraud.  

In the past, only around 20% of projects were evaluated.  

"The board has been very clear. The board has taken a zero-tolerance approach to any fraud and corruption and so all the projects have to be monitored and evaluated," said Scholtz.

She said the commission is now working closely with grant recipients to ensure they remain compliant.