Posts

Can a changed electoral system boost accountability?

By Judith February In South Africa, it’s becoming a matter of routine for presidential question time to be disrupted. Recent scenes in the National Assembly left little room for doubt – as if there was any after the chaos of the state of the nation address in February ­– that Parliament is fast losing the Read more >

How open is your government?

The World Justice Project (WJP), which works to advance the rule of law, recently launched its 2015 Open Government Index. This, says the organisation, is its first effort at measuring government openness around the world, and is based on ordinary people’s experiences and perceptions as they interact with their governments. Openness, says WJP, is a Read more >

Youth learn from their elders about corruption

By Lauren Tracey First published on ISS A lack of accountability by senior officials and politicians, combined with perceptions of high levels of corruption, could prove detrimental to the future prospects of young South Africans. Fraud and corruption cost the South African economy billions annually, but the impact of fraud and corruption is felt well Read more >

CW handbook on SGB elections now available

Download our new handbook which will help you to make the right choices in the upcoming school governing body elections. There are over 24 000 public schools across South Africa, and from Friday 6 March to Saturday 28 March, each one will go to the polls to elect school governing bodies (SGBs) to oversee the running of Read more >

Nkandla SMS initiative set up

By Janine Erasmus Accountability (noun): the fact or condition of being accountable; responsibility (Oxford). If the Public Members Unit Team (PMUT) has its way, South Africans will be paying for the R247-million upgrades to President Jacob Zuma’s private Nkandla residence not once – but twice. And Number One won’t bear the burden of accountability any Read more >

Dear Mr President

Dear Mr President I first wrote to you in 2012 asking you to take responsibility for your allegedly corrupt actions. Since then there’s been Guptagate, Public Protector spats, employment opportunities for your family, and Nkandlagate. You have operated with impunity, shifting the blame and avoiding responsibility. I know this letter will cause many to think Read more >

We need more than profit to grow a future

With South African general elections the biggest news story of the moment, citizens are more than ever conscious of the need to hold their leaders accountable for misuse of power and public funds. A number of corruption-related scandals that surfaced in the months leading up to 7 May gave many people cause to think carefully about Read more >

Parliament, part 3 – getting citizens involved

By Valencia Talane South Africa’s Parliament is the instrument whereby laws and policies of the country are proposed and their merits and legality debated on, before being passed, shelved for later discussion or discarded within a multi-party representation. The country’s Constitution allows for members of the general public to make submissions on laws or processes Read more >

Parliament, part 1 – its role in our society

By Valencia Talane How does Parliament serve you and me as ordinary citizens and why? How do members of Parliament come to sit in its houses? What is their purpose and who do they represent and why? With South Africa heading for its fifth elections since becoming a democracy, we answer these questions and more. Read more >