LEGISLATION AND SUBMISSIONSParty funding act useless if not enacted 14 Feb 2019, 8:14 By Pierre de Vos First published on Constitutionally Speaking Political parties in South Africa tend to resemble Eskom: they burn through piles of cash but seldom deliver as promised. Some of this cash comes from “donations” made to political parties (or to political leaders) by individuals and businesses (think Gavin Watson and Bosasa or Adriano Read more >
CORRUPTION NEWS Latest MPs’ register of interests not yet in sight 07 Nov 2017, 12:07 Parliament’s Joint Committee on Ethics and Members’ Interests recently set a closing date of Friday, 29 September 2017, for all members of Parliament (MPs) to disclose their business and financial interests. The Code of Ethical Conduct and Disclosure of Members’ Interests defines such interests as registrable interests, and MPs are required to make annual disclosures. Read more >
CORRUPTION NEWS MVC says all party donations must be accounted for 29 Jul 2016, 12:34 My Vote Counts (MVC) has embarked on the next step in its fight for transparency in political party funding in South Africa. The organisation is advocating for complete transparency and reform of the funding of all political parties, making it mandatory for all parties to disclose where their money is coming from, thereby giving all citizens the chance to Read more >
CORRUPTION NEWS Reforming party finance in SA: exploring the options 21 Jun 2016, 9:31 By Gary Pienaar and Collette Schulz-Herzenberg First published on Human Sciences Research Council Money plays a fundamental role in a democracy. Political parties need to reach their constituencies and inform them of their policies. Not disclosing private donations can lead to corruption, cronyism and policy capture, but would disclosing donations necessarily increase public trust? In Read more >
CORRUPTION NEWS Cleaning up political party funding 15 Jun 2016, 13:31 South Africa holds local government elections in just under two months. Our new three-part series looks at political party funding and the implications of disclosure or non-disclosure of private funding. Part one examines the results of a 2015 global study focusing on the transparency and effectiveness of political finance regimes. In part two we republish Read more >
OPINIONS Corruption and political party funding 19 Oct 2015, 11:26 By Matthew Kruger First published on the Helen Suzman Foundation website In South Africa, the events that generate political debate are always aplenty. In the space of three days in late September, we were all especially blessed. First, the US Securities Exchange Commission alleged that Hitachi, a foreign company, had a corrupt relationship with Chancellor Read more >
CORRUPTION NEWS MVC: Concourt party funding ruling a mere setback 07 Oct 2015, 13:07 The fight to compel political parties to publicly reveal where their private funding comes from is not over yet, says My Vote Counts’ (MVC) campaign coordinator Judith February. On Wednesday 30 September the Constitutional Court ruled against the bid brought forward by the MVC to compel political parties to publicly disclose where their private funding Read more >
CORRUPTION NEWS Political parties: the missing link in our constitution? 28 Aug 2015, 10:04 By Kate O’Regan Justice of the Constitutional Court (1994 – 2009) Introduction The Constitution of the United States of America is 7 000 words long. Nowhere does it mention political parties. And that was not because the question did not arise. James Madison, in The Federalist No 10, characterised “factions”, his reference to political parties, Read more >
CORRUPTION NEWS Open tender project under way in Gauteng 10 Feb 2015, 10:08 The Gauteng provincial government has delivered on its promise – made in November 2014 – of bringing unprecedented levels of openness and transparency to the murky waters of its tendering processes. The first public disclosure of a tender took place at the provincial treasury offices in Johannesburg on Friday, with that department being chosen to Read more >
