Today, 23 June, is World Whistle-blower Day, and our latest two-part mini-series highlights a new report titled Whistle-blower protection in South Africa: Where to from here?. The report was released in May by activism organisation Just Share, and assesses the effectiveness of legal frameworks in place to protect whistle-blowers. It also looks at various recommendations to strengthen protection for reporters.
Tomorrow, 23 June, is Africa Public Service Day, an occasion to recommit to high standards of professional ethics and prioritise the public interest. In advance of the occasion, Gauteng premier David Makhura released a report titled State of Ethics, Integrity Management and Fighting Corruption in Gauteng, which highlights provincial efforts to promote good governance and tackle corruption.
Oslo-based anti-corruption advice team U4 Anti-Corruption Resource Centre questioned 10 of the most commonly cited global corruption statistics. The organisation reviewed each claim, tracing it to its source and evaluating its credibility and reliability. The results were “disappointing” – but in no way do they negate the existence of the problems and in fact, may understate their extent.
The Phala Phala farm scandal, the Gupta arrests, and Hamilton Ndlovu’s overturned contracts – three big news stories of recent days which signal that the creaky wheel of justice is turning, albeit slowly. The developments bring hope that corrupt activities will no longer escape notice – law enforcement agencies are pursuing perpetrators, whistle-blowers are reporting them, and the media is paying close attention to them.
The financial position of 28% of South Africa’s municipalities is so dire that there is significant doubt whether they will be able to continue operating as a going concern in the near future – this was revealed in the 2020-21 municipal audit outcomes report, tabled earlier today in Parliament by Auditor-General Tsakani Maluleke. The gains made in some areas are negated by the overall grim picture.
The fifth and final instalment of the Zondo commission’s report is due to be handed to the Presidency on 15 May. In the meantime, here is a brief summary of the first four parts, and the entities and persons implicated.
The Special Investigating Unit, National Prosecuting Authority, and Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation recently faced a grilling from members of Parliament’s Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs portfolio committee. The three agencies were there to answer for the slow progression of Covid-19-related corruption cases.
Corruption Watch welcomes the arrest in Dubai of Atul and Rajesh Gupta. The pair are two of the three brothers who fled South Africa after their benefactor, former president Jacob Zuma, was removed from office in February 2018. The two are now to be extradited to South Africa to face charges of money laundering and fraud. The third brother, Ajay, remains a free man, for now.
Following the long-awaited arrests in Dubai of Atul and Rajesh, two of the three Gupta brothers, the process of extraditing them has now begun. The brothers, who face charges of money laundering and fraud, won’t be back in South Africa for a while yet, warns the National Prosecuting Authority, as extradition is long and complex.