As if last year’s irregular expenditure of R109-billion by provincial and national departments wasn’t bad enough, this year the figure rose to R166-billion. Presenting the 2020/21 Public Finance Management Act audit outcomes report, auditor-general Tsakani Maluleke today revealed that although there was again improvement in audit outcomes, the irregular spending and lack of accountability continue to hold the country back.
Corruption Watch has made a submission on the Companies Amendment Bill, with a focus on enhancing transparency and accountability within the new provisions related to beneficial ownership. The organisation is concerned that the proposed amendments do not go far enough to enable effective transparency.
Corruption Watch will, at the end of December, mark the departure of both its executive director David Lewis and board chairperson Mavuso Msimang. The latter marks the end of his second term on the board of the organisation, while Lewis embarks on other projects.
Former State Security Agency (SSA) director-general Arthur Fraser will not be cross-examining any of the witnesses who implicated him in state capture earlier this year. The chairperson of the state capture commission, acting Chief Justice Raymond Zondo on Wednesday dismissed an application by Fraser to cross-examine a number of witnesses in the intelligence stream of evidence.
Government employees facing charges of financial misconduct are costing the state more than R4- million while the corruption is probed.
A former head of department in the Free State government, Mpho Mokoena, was handed a 15-year suspended sentence for corruption by the Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court on Thursday. Mokoena headed up the provincial human settlements department from 2009 to 2011.
South Africa has a solid legal framework to fight money laundering and terrorist and proliferation financing, However, the country has “significant shortcomings implementing an effective system, including a failure to pursue serious cases, especially those linked to so-called ‘state capture’.”
South Africa has made a better showing on the 2020 Global Defence Integrity Index, released this week by Transparency International Defence & Security. The country rose above the halfway mark to end with a score of 57/100, eight points better than the G20 average of 49/100. This also takes it out of the 62% of countries that scored 49 or less.
Defend our Democracy, an association formed in March by civil society organisations – including Corruption Watch – religious leaders and individuals, has called on the South African public to participate in a United in Action Against Corruption week, which will run from 3 to 10 December. Highlights include a march on 5 December, and the release of a CW report on whistle-blowers on 9 December.