By David Lewis First published on Transparency International In March this year South Africa’s highest court upheld a landmark investigation by the courageous public protector Thuli Madonsela that showed how taxpayers’ money had been used to upgrade President Jacob Zuma’s personal residence. This underscored the importance of the role of the Public Protector in holding Read more >
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CORRUPTION NEWS
On Friday 22 April, a multiparty subcommittee of Parliament’s joint standing committee on intelligence met to shortlist candidates applying to be the new inspector-general of intelligence (IGI) – but dismally failed the transparency test. This has important implications for our Bua Mzansi campaign, which is mobilising people to get involved in choosing the new public protector. The Read more >
CORRUPTION NEWS
Public participation in the appointment of a new public protector – and other positions that require similar processes – is written into the Constitution. In chapter nine, section 193 (appointment of the public protector or member of any commission established under chapter nine) it states that “(6) The involvement of civil society in the recommendation Read more >
OPINIONS
They come, they see and – due to relaxed tax and finance laws, or legal firms that have perfected the art of tax avoidance – they conquer a lot more than they invest in Africa. These are multinational companies that find loopholes in the legislation of the continent’s poorest countries and are able to dodge Read more >
CORRUPTION NEWS
Described by our Supreme Court of Appeal as a “watchdog”, the Public Protector is also often compared to an ombudsman, which is an institution that originated in Sweden, created to ensure that public officials acted in terms of the law and discharged their duties properly. There are now a large number of such institutions around Read more >
CORRUPTION NEWS
Last year in April, Transparency International (TI) launched its initiative focusing on corruption in sport, at the same time indicating that it would release a comprehensive report in February the next year. Today the organisation releases that report as part of its flagship Global Corruption Report series. The global phenomenon of sport engages billions of Read more >
CORRUPTION NEWS
What values and attributes would you like to see in your next public protector? Many South Africans would not struggle in answering this question. This is partly because the public profile of the incumbent, Thuli Madonsela, has been raised broadly over the past few years, thanks to controversial issues investigated by her team as well Read more >
CORRUPTION NEWS
Corruption Watch today launched a mass public awareness and mobilisation campaign, Bua Mzansi, in a bid to ensure that the Office of the Public Protector remains a safely guarded cornerstone of South Africa’s democracy when the new public protector takes office later this year. The launch took place at Constitution Hill, the seat of South Read more >
CORRUPTION NEWS
It’s a new year, and the fight against corruption goes on. It is tempting to feel discouraged, but if you thought there was nothing you as an individual could do, think again! Let 2016 be the year you stand up and say: “So far, and no farther.” While the problem might be so deeply entrenched Read more >