CORRUPTION NEWS

National school nutrition programme – part one

By Valencia Talane A price of R22 for a loaf of bread would come as a surprise to the average South African consumer, even with the consistent rise in food prices over the past few years. It came as an even bigger surprise to a whistle-blower who alleged in a report to Corruption Watch that Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

How does schools procurement work?

By Lee-Ann Collingridge With much corruption at schools related to the buying of goods and services – commonly known as procurement – the government expends a lot of effort trying to manage the process. This has resulted in provincial education departments regularly issuing regulations to manage procurement by schools. How it’s done at no-fees schools Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

SA’s constitutional democracy under threat?

Source: Institute for Security Studies The recent attacks on South African public protector Thuli Madonsela, in relation to her report on the investigation into the R210-million upgrade to President Jacob Zuma’s private Nkandla homestead, should raise alarm bells for those who value South Africa’s constitutional democracy. After attempting to interdict the public protector from releasing her Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

Nkandla story not yet over

The presidential homestead in Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal, is once more in the news, not only because of the ongoing squabble between public protector Thuli Madonsela and the the police, defence, state security and public works ministers, but also because of previously undisclosed documentation that has just come to light. Parliament’s joint standing committee on intelligence (JSCI) Read more >

DEAR CORRUPTION WATCH

Using a minnow to nail a shark

Dear Corruption Watch, I would like to understand more about plea bargaining, which doesn't seem to serve justice. Former police commissioner Jackie Selebi was corrupted by Glenn Agliotti, who then got off in exchange for ratting on Selebi. Why is it so difficult to get sufficient evidence of a conspiracy without an informant, and why Read more >

HEROES & ZEROES

Gravy train rolls to a halt

Today is D-Day – or should that be C-Day – for politicians. In October, finance minister Pravin Gordhan reported in his mid-term budget speech that government credit cards would soon be a thing of the past, as existing ones would be cancelled and no new ones would be issued. This is one of the measures Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

Departments acting against financial corruption

The Public Service Commission (PSC) has submitted to Parliament its annual fact sheet on finalised cases of financial misconduct, from national and provincial government departments, for the 2011/2012 financial year. The PSC, a government organisation that investigates, monitors and evaluates the organisation and administration of the public service, has been tracking such finalised cases since Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

Macosa: school of shame

By Gcina Ntsaluba It’s an accepted fact that, for various reasons, the national basic education department is under-performing, and the ones who stand to lose the most are the children. The lack of furniture at Eastern Cape schools, particularly, is one of the major problems crippling learners and teachers, mostly in rural schools in the Read more >

DEAR CORRUPTION WATCH

When ‘acting’ is mere subterfuge

Dear Corruption Watch, We read a lot about jobs for pals in the public service. Some of these are ‘acting appointments’ that seem to last forever. I have reason to believe that many are made to circumvent the full hiring process, which opens up these appointments to corruption. Are there limitations to the length of Read more >