Corruption Watch, like many other organisations and individuals, relies on access to information to carry out its mandate. Today, on International Day for Universal Access to Information, we reflect on the importance of access to reliable information, and how lack of such access can impede the development of a culture of transparency and accountability.
As the Covid-19 pandemic mounts, writes Tim Hanstad for the World Economic Forum, we must build a coalition of civil society, business leaders, dedicated government officials and funders to strengthen government accountability and effectiveness and change the trajectory of this pandemic and our futures. Businesses should join civil society’s call for greater accountability from governments because they too must live with the consequences should governments fail.
The fifth instalment of Corruption Watch’s Analysis of Corruption Trends report, released today, shows that police-related allegations continue to top the list of sectoral reports received by the organisation. Corruption within law enforcement is so widespread that ordinary citizens are often forced to partake in corrupt activities or suffer a penalty. Corruption relating to schools, housing, and Covid-19 are also prevalent in our whistle-blowers’ complaints.
Almost 2 000 whistle-blowers reported acts of public and private sector corruption to Corruption Watch in the first six months of 2021. This, and details of those hotspots of corruption, are revealed in the organisation’s 2021 Analysis of Corruption Trends report, released today.
Respondents in a new Afrobarometer survey on corruption believe that high percentages of elected officials and civil servants are involved in corrupt activities, and that the South African Police Service is the most corrupt of all. Furthermore, South Africans remain fearful of reprisals should they expose corruption.
The Constitutional Court on 17 September dismissed the application by former president Jacob Zuma to rescind its 29 June judgment which found him guilty of contempt of court. Zuma had based his argument on two grounds – that the order was made in the party’s absence and that an error was made by the court that granted it – neither of which found favour with the justices. Zuma was ordered to pay the commission’s legal costs.
In order to improve our services and support, as well as advocate for broader legislative reform, we as Corruption Watch are interested in the public’s perceptions about blowing the whistle in South Africa. Our anonymous survey seeks to understand your knowledge, perceptions and attitudes in this regard.
Electioneering shenanigans, ineffective laws and commissions of inquiry are familiar scenarios nowadays, but in this article Zachary Meskell, writing for the Global Anticorruption Blog, shows that as far back as the Roman Republic, authorities were wrestling with the same issues. Today’s lawmakers would do well to learn some of the lessons gleaned from the Roman experience, says Meskell.
The Independent Electoral Commission’s first published political party funding report reveals that out of over 500 registered parties, only three – the ANC, DA, and ActionSA – made declarations of qualifying donations received from donors. The total value of declared donations in the first quarter, according to the report, is just over R30-million.
Visit our GivenGain R20 for Change page and help us demand transparency in our systems, accountability in our leaders, and better empowerment and protection of whistle-blowers. By donating R20 a month, you’ll be supporting our work with communities across the country, helping them to know and access their rights and reduce the corruption that robs people of resources intended for their benefit.