---
title: "New Lottery chair and acting boss appointed"
description: "New chairperson, Barney Pityana, and new acting commissioner, Lionel October, take over, possibly signalling major changes at the scandal-ridden National Lotteries Commission"
type: "NewsArticle"
publisher: "Daily Maverick"
site: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za"
section: "GROUNDUP LOTTO TOP BRASS"
author: "Raymond Joseph"
author_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/author/raymondjoseph/"
canonical_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2022-09-01-new-lottery-chair-and-acting-boss-appointed/"
published: "2022-09-01T19:22:37"
lang: "en-ZA"
word_count: 203
---

# New Lottery chair and acting boss appointed

> New chairperson, Barney Pityana, and new acting commissioner, Lionel October, take over, possibly signalling major changes at the scandal-ridden National Lotteries Commission

By Raymond Joseph · Published 1 September 2022, 21:22 SAST

## Content

Lionel October, the former director-general of the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (DTIC) [has been appointed](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1vls7-_GMoeIJ7fpLc7Cj_9GBf_1msEoy/view?usp=sharing) acting Commissioner of the National Lotteries Commission.

October’s appointment follows last month’s [sudden resignation](https://www.groundup.org.za/article/lottery-boss-resigns-with-immediate-effect/) of Thabang Mampane, only a few weeks before her second five-year term was due to expire and after *GroundUp* revealed that her home had been bought with Lottery money.

October stepped down as DTIC Director General in April last year to [take up a position](https://www.engineeringnews.co.za/article/lionel-october-served-government-with-distinction-says-patel-2021-04-30) as the head of the new Special Economic Zones unit at the Industrial Development Corporation.

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October’s appointment to the NLC hot seat is effective from 1 September.

It follows the appointment of human rights lawyer and cleric Barney Pityana as chairperson of the NLC board. Pityana also took up his appointment on 1 September.

*GroundUp* has [revealed](https://www.groundup.org.za/topic/lotto/) how hundreds of millions of rands from Lottery grants, meant for “good causes” have been lost to fraud and corruption, especially after the introduction of [so-called proactive funding](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2022-09-01-national-lotteries-commission-failed-to-act-on-corruption-warnings-from-self-commissioned-report/) in 2015.

Pityana’s and October’s appointments follow the appointment of a [new board](https://www.groundup.org.za/article/new-board-appointed-scandal-ridden-lottery/) earlier this year, as part of the clean-up of the [scandal-ridden](https://www.groundup.org.za/topic/lotto/) NLC. **DM**

*First published by*[*GroundUp*](https://www.groundup.org.za/article/new-acting-lottery-boss-appointed/)*.*

![Image](https://thirdpartyhits.groundup.org.za/counter/hit/dailymaverick/2022-09-01-new-acting-lottery-boss-appointed/)