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SA police serve the ANC insiders, not the people: here’s how it happened

30 Jul 2025, 12:33

Image: Wikimedia Commons By Ivor ChipkinFirst published on The Conversation: Africa After South Africa’s first democratic elections in 1994, there was significant optimism about police reform in the country. Impressive steps were taken to bring the South African Police Service under civilian control and to create a service responsive to calls for assistance from the Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

Madlanga commission terms of reference gazetted

28 Jul 2025, 12:27

President Cyril Ramaphosa has gazetted the upcoming Madlanga inquiry into law enforcement corruption. The gazette also includes the terms of reference which lay out the scope of the inquiry, and other regulations which guide its work. Ramaphosa established the “Judicial Commission of Inquiry into criminality, political interference, and corruption in the Criminal Justice System arising Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

Improving SA’s anti-corruption framework in the long and short term

05 Nov 2024, 12:18

To successfully tackle a problem and implement meaningful policy reform, there must be a clear understanding not only of the problem itself, but of the context in which that problem exists. For South Africa’s corruption problem, such understanding of the context is inadequate and little empirical information is available in this regard, and as a Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

A single anti-corruption agency is a high-risk option for SA

16 Sep 2024, 11:17

By Colette AshtonFirst published on Institute for Security Studies Corruption and state capture over the past decade in South Africa were enabled by an attack on the independence and capacity of its criminal justice agencies. As the country struggles to bring the perpetrators to book and prevent further damage, the question is: are South African Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

CW anticipating prosecutions in state capture to begin soon

26 Jun 2019, 10:19

By Linda van Tilburg First published on BizNews It is now well-known how Jacob Zuma and his associates destroyed capacity at many state institutions during his nine year tenure as President of South Africa. We get daily reminders as Eskom struggles to keep the lights on and keeps professing a very large begging bowl. Much Read more >

PRESS RELEASES

CW and ISS: State capture boosted violence and organised crime

19 Jun 2019, 17:36

Organised crime flourished under Jacob Zuma’s presidency as South Africa’s criminal justice agencies were manipulated for political and personal gain. This is one of many findings in a joint submission by the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) and Corruption Watch to the Judicial Commission of Inquiry into Allegations of State Capture (Zondo Commission). Interference in Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

Secretive, unearned promotions threaten SA’s policing

07 Mar 2019, 8:13

By Johan Burger First published on the ISS website As South Africans start to feel optimistic about actions to fix the criminal justice system, a secret project in the police could substantially weaken its ability to become a professional organisation. The South African Police Service (Saps) is promoting 600 people into management positions – not Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

Civil society is key player in cutting out crime

11 Jan 2019, 15:52

By Kwazi Dlamini First published in City Press The African Union (AU) has marked 2018 as the African year of anti-corruption, with the theme of Winning the Fight against Corruption: A Sustainable Path to Africa’s Transformation. One of the AU’s weapons in its anti-corruption arsenal is the African Union Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

Police overhaul needed to eradicate state capture taint

06 Mar 2018, 15:17

By Gareth Newham First published on the Institute for Security Studies Now that South Africa has undergone a profound political shift with the appointment of President Cyril Ramaphosa, the hard work of rebuilding various state institutions must begin. This is certainly true for law enforcement and intelligence agencies that were severely weakened by maladministration and Read more >