Entries by Corruption Watch

CW to release 2023 annual corruption report on 3 April

Corruption Watch (CW) will release its 12th annual corruption report, titled Changing the Landscape, on Wednesday 3 April 2024. In this election year, the message to South Africans, as outlined in CW chairperson Themba Maseko’s message, is to not remain passive, but to take the opportunity to demand accountability and help change the landscape in a country that is in dire need of relief from corruption and failing service delivery.

R14bn loss to MIs, but some positive strides being made

Auditor-General Tsakani Maluleke briefed Parliament earlier in March on progress made in terms of material irregularities, saying there was some forward momentum and resolution although 82% of notices issued to entities had not yet seen action. The South African Post Office and the Department of Defence are under the spotlight at the moment for not taking steps to prevent the loss of public money and for buying equipment which was not being used, respectively.

Treasury releases Q2 report on local govt revenue and expenditure

National Treasury’s local government revenue and expenditure report for Q2 of the 2023/24 financial year, released on 18 March 2023, reveals some interesting trends. Among other matters, the report shows a low spend on important conditional grants such as the Municipal Disaster Recovery Grant, with less than 13% of the budgeted amount spent over half the financial year.

The looters living it up from Prasa millions

Banks and auditors have turned a blind eye to the money looted over more than a decade from Prasa into the pockets of greedy and powerful figures, write Ra’eesa Pather and Qiqa Nkomo in this Open Secrets exposé. The masterminds behind the looting, now living in luxury while South African commuters struggle with a hopelessly inadequate rail system, are scrutinised in this second article of a three-part series.

The state of democracy around the world: latest report

The 2023 Global State of Democracy report presents a picture of both wins and losses. Although it confirmed the phenomenon of democratic backsliding observed over the last few years, there were still gains for many countries and for categories such as Participation, which measures how involved citizens are in democratic expression during and between elections.