Corruption is crippling economies across the African continent, writes social and political commentator Tafi Mhaka for Al Jazeera. Meanwhile, from Malawi to South Africa and Mozambique and further afield, high-ranking civil servants and their relatives, in cahoots with industry and business leaders, seem to have long been shamelessly stealing from the long-suffering masses.
Lack of action from about 2016 by the ANC against allegations of state capture was not a ‘’delay’’ as President Cyril Ramaphosa would like it to be known, the Zondo commission has concluded – rather, it should be seen as a firm decision not to act against former president Jacob Zuma and others who were complicit. Furthermore, the party sacrificed its sworn duty to serve the public on the altar of self-interest, the commission’s final report has found.
Corruption Watch has made a submission to the parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities, on the upcoming appointment of commissioners to the Commission on Gender Equality. The commission has been mired in controversy of late, but we argue that, if done with the proper consideration, the appointment of new commissioners could stabilise the leadership crisis and ensure that the body works to advance its constitutional mandate.
After topping the Open Budget Index in 2019, South Africa features in second place on the 2021 edition, behind Georgia. The OBI is a comparative measure of budget transparency, participation, and oversight. In the 2021 edition, 120 countries were assessed.
The Special Investigating Unit has celebrated 25 years of existence, and significant success in recovering stolen public money and resources. With its unique set of powers and its Special Tribunal which is similar in status to a high court, the SIU is well placed to continue investigating and acting against the corrupt.
Corruption needs to be confronted in Westminster and Washington before it can ever be dealt with effectively in Africa, says telecoms mogul Mo Ibrahim, who is Sudanese by birth. This is because Western countries such as the US and UK facilitate the illegal financial flows and money laundering that are depriving the continent of growth and development.
Comments are invited on the Basic Education Laws Amendment Bill, which is currently before Parliament. The deadline for comments from stakeholders and individuals has been extended to 15 August 2022. The Bill seeks to amend certain definitions, to strengthen enforcement mechanisms for offences and penalties, and to provide for financial and public accountability frameworks for governing bodies and provincial departments, among others.
Should President Cyril Ramaphosa, after pondering Chief Justice Raymond Zondo’s recommendations to deal with state capture, decide that an independent anti-corruption body is warranted, that body will have to be independent beyond just its description. Zondo’s recommendations go much further, in fact, to the elimination of the executive from all stages of public procurement.
To mark African Anti-Corruption Day, held every year on 11 July, Transparency International’s 28 chapters across the African continent have written an open letter to the African Union, reminding it of its anti-corruption commitments and urging it to accelerate action against the effects and perpetrators of corruption. The organisations emphasised the devastating effects of Covid-19-related corruption on the citizens of Africa, and demanded an end to impunity for those found guilty.