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CORRUPTION NEWS

A mandate to tackle corruption

Source: Transparency International South Africa is in the throes of the most hotly contested election in its short history of democracy. A mere 20 years into its widely applauded transition from apartheid, pervasive corruption is a central campaigning issue. This is magnified by the burgeoning scandal surrounding the incumbent president and the ruling party’s presidential Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

Armscor clarifies aspects of arms deal procurement

By Lee-Ann Alfreds They have formed a procession of grey men, with Afrikaans surnames and titles such as programme manager, acquisitions manager and chief financial officer. But while Robert Vermeulen, Johan Odendal, Jacobus Grobler, David Griesel and Henderich de Waal Esterhuyse have not necessarily provided headline-grabbing testimony, they have been important witnesses for the Arms Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

Arms commission holds great significance for country

By Lee-Ann Alfreds Just 750m apart, two different legal proceedings are underway in the heart of Pretoria. Both are intriguing, will influence the way South Africa is viewed around the world, and have had – to a greater and lesser extent – an impact on the lives of South Africans. But that is where the Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

The real cost of the arms deal

By Lee-Ann Alfreds The figures bandied about are staggering. R30-billion. R71-billion. R90-billion. But what is even more staggering is the fact that no one truly knows what the arms deal has cost South Africa. When the South African government announced the controversial deal in 1999, it stated that the purchase of helicopters, submarines, frigates and Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

Local government in South Africa – part 6, procurement

So far we’ve looked at the structure of municipalities, the laws that govern their management, the way they should handle finances, and the people who manage these tasks. In the last article in our series, we explain how procurement should work in a municipality. Municipalities spend their revenue on a wide range of expenses such Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

Access to classified documents hampers commission

Whistleblower Richard Young was unable to cross-examine Armscor programme manager Frits Nortje because he does not have sufficient time and access to classified documents – this is one of the big concerns around the Seriti Commission, which is investigating “allegations of fraud, corruption, impropriety or irregularity in the strategic defence procurement package”. Lawyers for Human Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

Community could have benefited from Nkandla

Public protector Thuli Madonsela yesterday released her long awaited final report into the alleged irregular and excessive expenditure on security upgrades at Nkandla, President Jacob Zuma’s private residence in KwaZulu-Natal. Madonsela’s investigation is not the first to have been conducted on the controversial construction project. In October 2012 public works minister Thulas Nxesi ordered an Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

Tlakula did make inappropriate moves

Corruption Watch has reported before on the questionable leasing deal entered into by the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) – a deal that saw the IEC in 2009 signing a contract to rent its new head office building in Centurion, at a cost of R320-million over 10 years. In October 2011 the United Democratic Movement's Bantu Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

Belief in offsets was naive

By Lee-Ann Alfreds The premise was irresistible: 64 165 jobs would be created and between R104-billion and R110-billion in investment attracted in return for spending just R30-billion, plus finance costs, on arms. So the South African government, unable to resist, duly contracted with several foreign arms companies to supply fighter jets, submarines, corvettes, helicopters and Read more >