Overall, the 2021 Corruption Perceptions Index – released today by Transparency International – shows that control of corruption has stagnated or worsened in 86% of countries over the last decade. This situation is also true of South Africa.
Just like Eskom and Transnet, South African Airways irregularly spent millions of rands on the now-defunct New Age newspaper. Former acting CEO Vuyisile Kona approved a significant increased expenditure on a subscription to the publication, without a budget or any knowledge of the affordability, effectiveness and commercial value for the airline.
In this article, taken from the foreword of Daring to Act, our recently-released report on perceptions of whistle-blowing in South Africa, former South African Airways treasurer Cynthia Stimpel reflects on her experience and suggests ways in which the private and public sectors can make life easier for their whistle-blowers.
On Tuesday 25 January, Transparency International, the leading civil society organisation tackling corruption worldwide, releases its annual Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI). For the first time in its 27-edition history, the CPI will offer a comprehensive look at a decade of corruption, revealing if the country has improved, regressed or stagnated over the last 10 years.
Acting chief justice and state capture commission chairperson Raymond Zondo has found that the same modus operandi used at Eskom was used at Transnet to favour the now defunct TNA Media for irregular contracts worth millions, despite there being no value for the parastatal and no proper procurement processes followed. Between 2012 and 2017, Transnet spent over R120-million on TNA business breakfasts that were broadcast on television over the period, and a further R24-million as sponsor of The Big Interview.
Bain & Co and Nedbank – both implicated in the Zondo commission’s first report on the three years of hearings into allegations of state capture – have both denied any wrongdoing on their part. Bain is said to have been involved in the weakening of Sars, while Nedbank and Regiments Capital allegedly manoeuvred a dubious interest-swap agreement with Acsa.
The first report of the Zondo commission, published on 4 January 2022, zooms in on the dealings that Transnet, Eskom and SAA had with Gupta-owned TNA Media. In the case of Eskom, it highlights the major procurement policy breaches surrounding three contracts entered into between the power utility and TNA and how they did not yield benefits for Eskom, despite being characterised as opportunities for exposure through the TNA Breakfast Briefings on SABC’s Morning Live..
The February 2011 transfer of Themba Maseko from the position of CEO of the GCIS) to the Department of Public Service and Administration was one of the earliest acts of state capture by the Gupta family. So writes Acting Chief Justice Raymond Zondo in the state capture commission’s first report. Zondo describes Maseko as “one of the few government officials who was willing to stand up to the pressure exerted by the Gupta family”.
Released just before the local government elections of 3 November 2021, the latest Governance Performance Index from Good Governance Africa shows that in some areas, negative audit outcomes and repeated promises are having no effect on improving the lives of residents.
Visit our GivenGain R20 for Change page and help us demand transparency in our systems, accountability in our leaders, and better empowerment and protection of whistle-blowers. By donating R20 a month, you’ll be supporting our work with communities across the country, helping them to know and access their rights and reduce the corruption that robs people of resources intended for their benefit.