Today, 15 September, is the International Day of Democracy. It serves as an opportunity to review the state of democracy in the world. Democracy is as much a process as a goal, and only with the full participation of and support by the international community, national governing bodies, civil society and individuals, can the ideal of democracy be made into a reality to be enjoyed by everyone, everywhere.
On 14 September President Jacob Zuma and the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) argued in the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) against an earlier ruling to reinstate 783 charges of fraud, racketeering and corruption against Zuma. The charges are related to alleged inducements he received in exchange for using his political influence in the awarding of contracts around the 1999 arms deal.
The Ethics Perceptions Survey was developed by the Anti-Intimidation and Ethical Practices Forum to quantitatively capture the perceptions that professionals hold regarding ethics in their society, organisations and professional institutions. The survey also endeavoured to measure perceptions of reporting unethical behaviour and to gauge whether support for ethical conduct and reporting unethical behaviour is forthcoming in organisations in South Africa. Read the report here.
Corruption Watch and the Institute for Security Studies are in Parliament today to ask for stricter criteria for recruitment of the SAPS national commissioner and head of the Hawks, two of the most important functions in a country with rising crime, violence and corruption. The two organisations will also place emphasis on the serial crises of top management in the SAPS and Hawks that is referred to in the National Development Plan of 2012.
We need to come down hard on professionals in the private sector who show the middle finger to society’s values, writes David Lewis, our executive director. We will ask the US department of justice to investigate McKinsey’s conduct in SA, which we believe is in gross contravention of the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. and we have submitted a complaint to the ombudsman of the International Finance Corporation, arguing that it failed to comply with its own ethical standards when investing in Net1.
The Information Regulator has published draft regulations relating to the Protection of Personal Information Act, and is calling for the public to participate by commenting. comments will be accepted until 7 November 2017. The act impacts any person or organisation who holds any form of personal data, including Corruption Watch.
Corruption Watch, Black Sash and Equal Education have filed a complaint with the Compliance Advisor / Ombudsman of the International Finance Corporation, requesting that the ombud conduct a compliance appraisal and investigation into the circumstances of the IFC’s $107-million combined equity investment in Net1 UEPS Technologies Inc. and its subsidiary, Cash Paymaster Services (Pty) Ltd.
Gauteng traffic officers who engage in corrupt activities must be wary – from October, lifestyle audits will be conducted on the provincial traffic police, and soon people posing as ordinary motorists will also be out and about on the roads to trap officers who demand bribes.
The homelessness found in South Africa’s impoverished communities can be alleviated in some respects were it not for the greed of those whom we have entrusted with power, writes Melusi Ncala. It is deeply concerning that in picking up the pieces of our dark history and building a new South Africa, there are those who seek to undermine the laws of the country, violating many of our people’s constitutional right to housing.