Wina Njalo hopes to announce successful bidders for Parkstau by May 9th
HCI Foundation initiative Wina Njalo has bid for a new lottery license, but the Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition said they were unable to commit to the date. Minister Parkstau recently announced the “target date” for the announcement of bidders on May 28th. The current operator, Isaba’s license expires on May 31st. Wina Njalo hopes the date will be ordered by the Pretoria High Court. However, the Minister’s lawyer said he could not do so.
Tau, Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition, was not committed to the date of awarding a new license to operate the National Lottery, says Wina Njalo, who is bidding for the new lottery license.
HCI Foundation initiative Wina Njalo is seeking to launch a court case against Tau and force him to award a fourth license.
Tau recently announced its “target date” for bidder announcements on May 28th. Wina Njalo hopes to order this from the Pretoria High Court.
CEO Dawid Benjamin Muller said in an affidavit filed this week that the Minister had no difficulty agreeing to “explicitly reflect his designated commitment” and “explicitly reflect his stated commitment” to award and conclude a fourth license by May 31, when the license of current operator Isaba has expired.
“However, the minister was not prepared to commit to this on court orders, which only means that his target date is not the real date the minister is ready to make a decision,” Muller said.
This was a misleading bidder, he said.
He said that if the Minister agreed to agree to the draft order sent to him, it would have avoided the need for an emergency court hearing set for April 22.
However, the minister refused to agree.
Instead, his lawyers indicated that the extension of the validity period (for the third license currently held by Isba) could still be required if it was “if the process of granting a fourth license cannot be completed by May 31, 2025.”
The lawyer said that even if a fourth license is awarded on time, temporary licenses may still be required as successful applicants may not be able to start operations immediately.
They said the minister “avoids the situation where there is no lottery” and therefore could not agree to the draft order.
In its first application, Wina Njalo claimed that Tau was irritating the process in order to “advance the interests of current licensee.” This is because Ithuba can only grant temporary licenses to Isaba, which is given the infrastructure. Also, based on the license being valid for only one year, other bidders will not spend money on the necessary infrastructure.
Wina Njalo is seeking an order that announced successful bidders by May 9th and directs the Minister to negotiate and conclude a license agreement by May 31st.
They also seek an order that will set aside the demand for a temporary license proposal that is unconstitutional and unlawful.
The company said the delay in awarding the fourth license and the minister’s “irrational and illegal” decision to extend the bid valuation process by another year and issue a new request for a 12-month “temporary license” proposal threatened the very existence of the National Lottery.
Mueller said the minister was unable to proceed with the appropriate reason not to grant a fourth license despite being repeatedly asked to do so.
“He also failed to introduce an amended timetable for the final decision of the bid award, despite being promised in writing by the National Lotteries Commissions (NLC) Board of Directors seven months ago.”
Muller did not provide all the documents in providing a record of his decision – the evaluation and arbitrage documents prepared by the NLC, documents relating to an independent audit of bidders, and documents the Minister consulted with the NLC about the award of the license.
It is also “not a single document” regarding the minister’s consultation with government bonds, which he introduced in a media statement in December 2024.
Muller said that decisions not to award licenses yet, decisions to extend the bidding process and provision temporary licenses are all illegal.
He said records showed that other bidders shared Wina Njalo’s concerns.
He said in December that the NLC saw the temporary license award as “inevitability.”
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“This is acknowledging that it is a continuing delay for the Minister, not a new, unexpected, unavoidable event. This has required the new, unexpected temporary license to be considered, and we are confirming that the Minister’s delays have been in service for two months.
“The long, ongoing delays are important and important, and it’s a critical period (nearly four months). If no explanation was given by the Minister about what he was doing at that time, the Chief could avoid not wanting to make a licence decision, and therefore the expansion of Ithoba has become the conclusion of persecution.”
He said that the temporary license was an illegal extension of Isaba’s current license, and that the proposed invitees to other bidders would participate in the award – illegally exclude others in what should be an open process was to “easy attitude” and prevent objections and legal challenges.
Muller said Wina Njalo will continue with the emergency application set for April 22nd.
The Minister and the NLC have submitted a notice of their will to oppose the application. They will be required to file an affidavit until April 14th.
