What is grand corruption and how can we stop it?

First published by Transparency International Grand corruption is one of the great unresolved legal challenges of our day. With its serious and often global effects, combating grand corruption must be the responsibility of the international community. For this to happen grand corruption should be treated as an international crime. Transparency International has developed a legal Read more >

A tale of moral shakedowns: #1 – Trouble with traffic

By Zola Valashiya Our socialisation conditions us to be law-abiding citizens. Generally, the majority of South Africans are. Despite the crime rate, despite reports of the blatant looting of public resources by politicians, many of us still remain and aspire to be the model citizen. In a country like ours, where corruption is rife, I Read more >

CW to lay criminal charges against SARS commissioner

Corruption Watch issued a letter yesterday to the South African Revenue Services (SARS) commissioner, Tom Moyane, concerning his failure to act decisively on the findings of a report from the Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC), detailing fraud and corruption by senior SARS employees, Jonas Makwakwa and Kelly-Ann Elskie. The anti-corruption organisation is disturbed by the manner Read more >

Ibrahim index: African govts lacking in accountability

If corruption in Africa is to be fought successfully, the latest data from the Ibrahim Index of African Governance (IIAG) – released recently by the Mo Ibrahim Foundation – should be taken very seriously by governments that wish to end the scourge. The foundation developed the index 10 years ago, and through it, evaluates the Read more >

The arms deal: so many questions

• First published in the Sunday Times Civil society groups have gone to court to have the findings of the Seriti commission of inquiry into the arms deal set aside. Chris Barron asked David Lewis, chairman [Note: David Lewis is the executive director of Corruption Watch; Mavuso Msimang is the chairman] of Corruption Watch … Read more >

Mkhwebane: I will not ignore high-profile cases

Claims that she will no longer focus on high-profile cases are simply not true, said Public Protector Busi Mkhwebane at her first media briefing today. “One of my priorities is to bring the services of our office to grassroots level. I want to make it possible for an African child in a small village to Read more >

What’s happening in the Prasa case?

If ever there was a campaign for how not to run a parastatal, the Passenger Rail Association of South Africa (Prasa) would be the poster child. In the current narrative of how the country’s state-owned entities can be better run to avoid multi-million rand losses due to poor management, Prasa is one of the talking Read more >

CW and R2K challenge Seriti Commission

Today Corruption Watch (CW) and the Right2Know (R2K) Campaign have launched an application in the High Court of South Africa, Gauteng Division, Pretoria. The application asks the court to review and set aside the findings of the Arms Procurement Commission, also known as the Seriti Commission. This follows a relentless struggle by civil society for Read more >

Open tender process shines light on procurement

The Gauteng provincial government (GPG) hosted its first open tender seminar recently, showcasing the progress the province has made in rolling out its open tender project over the past two years. The event was also aimed at encouraging other provincial governments and municipalities to adopt the process. Attendees came from the public and private sectors Read more >