CORRUPTION NEWS

Twenty years on: no more elimination of corruption

The 2014 national elections mark the 20-year anniversary of the ANC-led government and while views on whether or not the country’s fortunes have improved vary widely, even the most rosy-bespectacled of citizens would have a hard time denying that corruption has become a massive problem in recent years. Because there has been only one party Read more >

DEAR CORRUPTION WATCH

Party favours at public expense

Dear Corruption Watch, Last week you looked at how public funding designated for elections is monitored, but how can we be sure that political parties do not use other public funds for electioneering? Are ministers, premiers and MECs allowed to use their official cars and helicopters? Can they dispense food bought with public money while Read more >

HEROES & ZEROES

Taxpayers foot the bill for R1m worth of plant pots

Our zero this week is the embattled IEC head Pansy Tlakula, who is again making headlines after further analysis of a recent PricewaterhouseCoopers investigation into the controversial head office lease agreement for the election body has revealed that she overspent on décor for her office – to the tune of almost a million on 399 Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

The real cost of the arms deal

By Lee-Ann Alfreds The figures bandied about are staggering. R30-billion. R71-billion. R90-billion. But what is even more staggering is the fact that no one truly knows what the arms deal has cost South Africa. When the South African government announced the controversial deal in 1999, it stated that the purchase of helicopters, submarines, frigates and Read more >

INVESTIGATION

Poorly managed water project no boon to community

By Gcina Ntsaluba In the heart of KwaZulu-Natal’s Zululand district, high up in the valleys and mountains, rural settlements nestle. They’re cut off from a vital necessity, access to water. In a province where many rural communities have no access to running water, the people of KwaNsinde tribal authority – ordinary village folks with little Read more >

INVESTIGATION

KZN water crisis: too little too late

By Gcina Ntsaluba With about 14 % of its people having no access to clean water, in this respect KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) is one of the worst affected provinces in South Africa, according to a water and sanitation report released earlier in March 2014 by the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC). While the national average Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

Little effort by SA to prosecute acts of foreign bribery

By Valencia Talane South Africa is not doing enough to bring to book individuals and companies linked to acts of bribery involving foreign companies and governments. Furthermore, the country’s “political and economic considerations” are thought to be contributing to this worrying state of affairs. This was recently revealed by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

Local government in South Africa – part 6, procurement

So far we’ve looked at the structure of municipalities, the laws that govern their management, the way they should handle finances, and the people who manage these tasks. In the last article in our series, we explain how procurement should work in a municipality. Municipalities spend their revenue on a wide range of expenses such Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

Access to classified documents hampers commission

Whistleblower Richard Young was unable to cross-examine Armscor programme manager Frits Nortje because he does not have sufficient time and access to classified documents – this is one of the big concerns around the Seriti Commission, which is investigating “allegations of fraud, corruption, impropriety or irregularity in the strategic defence procurement package”. Lawyers for Human Read more >