Minstrels carry out in Athlone on two January 2017. Archive Image: Ashraf Hendricks
A report by attorneys Dabishi Nthambeleni right into a R27.three-million grant with the National Lotteries Fee towards the Cape City Minstrel Carnival Association (CTMCA) to get a minstrels museum has identified no evidence that a museum ever existed.
The investigators found that the CTMCA didn't use the R5-million allotted to buy or create a museum.
They also observed the CTMCA only purchased land value R1.seven-million, not R5-million as allotted.
They observed the CTMCA applied funds in the Lottery to purchase workshop machines from certainly one of its individual administrators, Richard “Pot” Stemmet.
A leaked forensic report reveals how numerous rand granted towards the Cape Town Minstrel Carnival Affiliation (CTMCA) via the Countrywide Lotteries Fee (NLC) to setup a museum to rejoice the town’s prosperous minstrel heritage went astray. The museum was hardly ever produced.
The small print on the abuse of countless rands of Lottery resources for a museum that never ever was are discovered within an investigative report commissioned by the NLC in 2021.
The museum grant was Portion of a lot more than R64-million in Lottery funds allocated towards the CTMCA concerning 2003 and 2017.
The very first Portion of the investigation, by regulation company Dabishi Nthambeleni, was done concerning September 2020 and January 2021 and focused on a R27.3-million grant into the CTMCA in 2014, which bundled funding to the museum. The authorized finances for the museum was over R12.eight-million, with R5-million of that allotted to get a building to accommodate the museum.
Study the report (PDF, 7MB)
The NLC tasked Dabishi Nthambeleni to research the purchase of the developing for that museum and whether the museum “essentially existed”.
The firm was also instructed to research
the acquisition with Lottery resources of two autos – a sixty-seater bus and a 23-seater bus – for R2.4-million; and
several machines “ordered with the production from the costumes and hats” to the minstrels carnival, for R5.four-million.
At the time, convicted legal Richard “Pot” Stemmet was director on the CTMCA. He was appointed a director of your CTMCA in September 1996. He resigned in December 2016 but his spouse Zainonesa and daughter Raziah continued as two of several administrators from the organisation. Stemmet was reappointed as a director in May 2021.
The investigation adopted in depth reporting by GroundUp with regard to the an incredible number of rands of Lottery funding allotted on the CTMCA (see below, listed here and here) and the best way the funds most likely aided finance the ANC’s 2014 election marketing campaign from the Western Cape, led by at the time by Marius Fransman.
The constructing on the best was the meant web site in the 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 listed grants to a few CTMCA “tasks” - such as the museum - in between 2012 and 2015. All a few tasks were finished, she explained to MPs.
Though the investigators observed no evidence that a museum had ever existed.
To start with the museum was because of open up in rented premises in Crete Street, Wetton. A photograph acquired by GroundUp of the intended Wetton museum demonstrates a espresso shop with some musical instruments and minstrel costumes and collages of photos haphazardly hung about the partitions, along with a design ship on its plinth inside a corner.
In its report, Dabishi Nthambeleni explained it absolutely was “not ready” to substantiate if a museum had ever operated from these premises.
Stemmet instructed the investigators the museum were moved as they could now not manage the rent of R100,000 per month. He claimed the CTMCA had acquired house for R1.seven-million in Schaapkraal for that museum, but could not get it rezoned, and were marketed for a similar price tag. Schaapkraal is inside a peri-city area considerably from the city.
As a result, the museum were moved to a different locale in Primrose Park in February 2021, Stemmet explained to the Dabishi Nthambeleni investigators. But just after viewing the premises, which might be in an industrial spot, the investigators reported they doubted no matter whether a suitable museum existed there. Images connected on the report exhibit a mishmash of randomly shown uniforms, musical devices and diverse minstrel paraphernalia nailed to the wall, exhibited on tables and unfold out on the floor, without having explanation.
“You will find there's minimal amount of goods with the museum [that] by no means characterize the a lot more than a hundred-year heritage on the Cape City Carnival, the investigators said, including that there was “no signage exterior the premises indicating which they housed a museum and … normally, the museum won't seem to be open up to the general public.”
The CTMCA experienced breached the grant settlement, Dabishi Nthambeleni noted, by going the location on the museum to an alternate site without having notifying the NLC.
The Schaapkraal house, on which no museum was at any time built. Photo: Raymond Joseph
Buses
Stemmet advised the investigators which the CTMCA had to maneuver in the rented Crete Highway premises mainly because it experienced run up a R4-million debt with town of Cape Town and was afraid its products will be attached.
“Mainly because of the legal battles and the debts, the organisation had to maneuver its house from five Crete Road to steer clear of the sheriff from attaching the residence of the organisation,” Stemmet advised the investigators.
Sedrick Soeker, The existing director in the CTMCA, explained to them that the two buses bought with lottery funds ended up saved within a key spot “hidden through the Sheriff”. However the investigators explained they have been not able to substantiate that any buses had at any time been acquired.
Stemmet also verified that the buses were hidden to halt them staying seized. But if the investigators questioned to generally be taken on the spot where the buses ended up saved, he explained to them that “the owner of The key spot wasn't available to open the premises for us”.
“The CTMCA could not present evidence of payment for 2 automobiles that it allegedly procured with grant funds,” the investigators claimed.
Soeker also advised them the Schaapkraal property had been sold due to the financial debt.
“Mr Soeker stated that In line with his understanding, a result of the debt owed to the City of Cape City, the CTMCA determined It will be finest to promote their [Schaapkraal] residence … and to also to hide the belongings with the CTMCA to steer clear of the sheriff from attaching the property.”
JP Smith, Cape Town’s mayco member for security and safety, has Earlier told GroundUp which the CTMCA “threw funds away” on litigation with the town.
“Every year like clockwork, as we method the end in the yr, the CTMCA picks a legal struggle with the town, around permits or another thing. We never initiate it. They preserve throwing cash absent on vexatious litigation which they lose and have expenses awarded against them. This can be entirely self-inflicted,” he reported.
Soeker explained to the Dabishi Nthambeleni investigators that the principle function players on problems with Lottery funding have been Stemmet and previous CTMCA board member Kevin Momberg, “who ended up accountable for each of the admin, funds and functioning หวย ออก the CTMCA.” The investigators reported they had been not able to contact Momberg.
Hats
For the duration of their “investigation in loco” within the Primrose Park premises, the investigators “identified quite a few equipment, some in good issue, some in lousy condition and a few that looked rusty and extremely previous”. Stemmet advised the investigators that there was also an off-internet site storage facility wherever “instruments and some equipment” were kept.
“We questioned him to take us to the ability but he was evasive to our request.”
Depending on photographs and invoices in GroundUp’s possession, some, if not all, in the goods appear to be machines which was illegally removed from the CTMCA’s preceding premises. Stemmet is facing rates for this removal.
Based on the closing development report submitted for the NLC with the CTMCA, the equipment was procured from Martin-Conne Milliners, an organization wherein Stemmet, his spouse and his daughter were directors at the time.
The investigators discovered this “alarming”.
“From your CIPC research of Martin-Conne Milliners as well as invoices submitted, we Take note the subsequent alarming obtaining: Mr Stemmet himself is really a director of Martin-Conne Milliners. The registered handle of the corporate is 5 Crete Highway, Wetton, Cape City, a similar tackle on which the museum was intended to be designed and/or transformed,” they reported.
An audit by accountants Kopano Integrated, hooked up to the investigative report, recorded that the CTMCA was in the entire process of purchasing “machinery, plant and inventory” valued at R8.one-million from Stalph 164 CC, investing as Martin-Conne Milliners. Staph 164 was an in depth corporation of which Stemmet was one among the directors.
In line with Dabishi Nthambeleni, the corporate has paid out R1.2-million as being a deposit, this means R6.nine-million remains to be owed, even though there's no payment day established for when this has to be compensated.
The Kopano audit plus the close connection amongst the businesses “show to us that there's ‘foul play’ associated with the acquisition in the equipment from the museum workshop”, the investigators claimed inside the report.
“We discover that it's extremely probable that CTMCA made use of the funding of your NLC to ‘refund’ among its key administrators for that residence at a better overpriced amount than the particular price tag and worth of the home and/or machinery.”
Recommendations
Dabishi Nthambeleni concluded that it absolutely was unable to ascertain how the grant for the CTMCA were expended.
“Actually, a detailed report on how the funding with the NLC was employed, could be impossible given that the CTMCA does not have any receipts, or evidence of payments to substantiate the amounts expended on Each and every product it requested funding for. The interim report and closing report from the CTMCA only connect invoices,” Dabishi Nthambeleni concluded.
The investigators found the NLC experienced not conducted a web-site pay a visit to in advance of approving the grant. But this wasn't typical practice at the time and they discovered no evidence of negligence by NLC employees.
At some time, the NLC’s regulations did not need funded organisations to post proof of payment with interim reports, they identified. This meant which the CTMCA was able to get a next tranche of funding while not having to offer evidence that it had made use of the primary tranche for its meant goal.
Next the appointment of a whole new board, commissioner and senior govt group, the NLC has tightened up on these as well as other challenges.
Dabishi Nthambeleni advised that
the NLC drop any potential funding apps within the CTMCA;
the CTMCA and any users who were involved in the grant be subjected towards the NLC’s “delinquency” method;
the NLC open a prison situation of fraud with SAPS or the Hawks for allegations of fraud; and
the NLC begin the entire process of recovering the misappropriated funds.
But, rather then act to the report’s recommendations, the NLC – underneath its prior administration – selected to suppress it, as it had carried out with the preceding experiences into corruption it had commissioned.
GroundUp sent inquiries to Stemmet and Soeker by using SMS, and asked for email addresses to deliver the queries by e mail far too. But no reaction had been acquired at time of publication.
The minstrel “museum” in Crete Street, Wetton. Picture: Raymond Joseph