The Editor
The Daily News
22 May 2008
CHILDLINE CEOs ATTACK ON NATIONAL LOTTERY SPOKESPERSON
Joan van Niekerk’s attack on the National Lotteries Board’s spokesperson (Sershan Naidoo) in the Daily News of 19 May 2008 has reference.
The attack is unwarranted and reeks of attention seeking. For Ms. van Niekerk to attack a spokesperson personally is an indication of how ill informed she really is. A spokesperson represents an organisation and not his/her personal views. Having said that, in the attack Ms. van Niekerk refers to the article by Siyabonga Mkhwanazi in the 14 May 2008 edition of the Daily News.
Unless we are missing something, nowhere in the article is the spokesperson or any representative of the National Lotteries Board quoted as saying, "money given by the lottery to charities was spent on salaries instead of helping alleviate poverty".
The Board was questioned about contributions to beneficiary organisations following a sensationalised press release from the Democratic Alliance saying that no funds were paid to beneficiaries in 2006. The Board’s response was that funds were paid to beneficiaries, over R1,02 billion to 2 500 beneficiaries to be more precise. The journalist raised the concern of the DA that organisations were claiming that they had to lay off staff because they hadn’t received a NLDTF grant. The Board’s response was that in terms of the Lotteries Act and related regulations, only projects of applicants should be funded. This is in order to prevent dependency. It is the responsibility of the applicant organisations to therefore ensure that they make provision for the day to day operations.
Never has the Board or any of its representatives said that beneficiary organisations were using NLDTF grants on ‘salaries instead of helping alleviate poverty’.
The Board and the Distributing Agency for Charities are concerned at Ms. Van Niekerk’s ever willingness to attack the National Lottery. Ms. Van Niekerk’s organisation, Childline, has benefited from the proceeds of the National Lottery as follows:
2002: R 300,000.00
2003: R1,024,000.00
2004: R 845,720.00
2005: R3,583,591.00
2006: R 800,000.00
2007: R1,500,000.00
2008: R4,856,280.00
An amount of R12,9 million has been granted to Childline and yet the CEO of an organisation that offers such valuable service to our children still finds reason to attack the NLDTF. We can only question the motives of such an outcry from Ms. Van Niekerk.
We would also like to state that the committee that takes decisions on applications is made up of industry experts that are engaged in the welfare sector. They have been appointed as a result of a public nomination process. Their function is to take decisions on applications and also advise the Minister, together with the National Lotteries Board, on policy formulation. Should Ms. Van Niekerk or any other person working in this sector feel that they could help improve the processes, they should have themselves nominated when the next public call is made.
Besides the NLDTF’s disappointment at the unwarranted statements made by Ms. Van Niekerk, the Board is concerned that its response to the allegations made by the Democratic Alliance were not given the same importance as the sensation-seeking statement of the DA. The Board has also responded directly to issues on specific organisations queried by Siyabonga Mkhwanazi and this too has not been published. Our wish is that just as the public has the right to criticise through your publication, the Board has the same right to respond through your publication.
Yours faithfully
NATIONAL LOTTERIES BOARD
Sershan T Naidoo
Manager: Beneficiary & Player Relations, and Media Liaison