The Corruption Challenges Index for 2017, released by global consultancy firm Risk Advisory Group, ranks 181 countries in terms of the markets that pose the most – and the fewest – corruption challenges for investing businesses. It presents an unexpected result for South Africa, one that is not as doom-laden as results from other indexes.
New court documents, filed by Pretoria lawyer Ajay Sooklal in support of Corruption Watch and Right2Know’s court case challenging the findings of the Seriti Commission, allege that President Jacob Zuma benefited handsomely from South Africa’s controversial arms deal and that he instructed Sooklal to withhold that information from the commission.
On Saturday 29 April President Jacob Zuma signed the long-awaited Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC) bill into law. The amended FIC act is aimed at strengthening domestic regulations that deal with money laundering, the financing of terrorism, and illicit financial transactions. Corruption Watch was one of a number of civil society organisations which made parliamentary submissions regarding the content of the FIC bill.
It is illegal for a no-fee school to charge fees of any kind to parents, although parents can be encouraged to make “voluntary contributions” of money or time to the school. But Corruption Watch has had many reports of no-fee schools like Mpumelelo Primary School charging fees to parents, and sometimes even withholding a child’s progress report or barring them entry to the school premises if the parent has not paid.
Corruption Watch has laid criminal charges against South African Revenue Services (Sars) commissioner, Tom Moyane, as well as two senior Sars employees, Jonas Makwakwa and Kelly-Ann Elskie. In the interests of transparency, we publish all the correspondence relating to our investigation.
If corruption in South Africa becomes institutionalised, writes Prof William Gumede of Wits University’s School of Governance, it will be virtually impossible to tackle it. In a policy brief published recently, he outlines a number of steps that can be taken to combat corruption, but although they have all been suggested at one time or another, those in authority have been reluctant to adopt them.
When leadership power is used for self-enrichment and self-interest and to pursue corrupt ends, it amounts to a gross abuse of power, writes Cynthia Schoeman. But now is not a time to succumb to feeling powerless – we must remember the strength and resilience of the many social activists who fought for our freedom, and find that same strength within ourselves. Now is the time to be an ethics activist.
Former National Director of Public Prosecutions, Mxolisi Nxasana, has filed a revealing and potentially damning affidavit in response to an application lodged by Corruption Watch and Freedom Under Law. Nxasana reveals that he did not make a request to the president to leave office in terms of section 12(8) of the NPA Act and that therefore the president’s version of events is false, among other statements.
Online technology has removed much of the human element from various business and compliance transactions, which helps make them efficient and nearly error-free. But can we safely say that e-governance processes work in eliminating the potential of bribery and corruption?