By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
President Cyril Ramaphosa says the government has made substantial progress in strengthening the state’s ability to deal with corruption, since he made a commitment in his 2018 State of the Nation Address.
“I said that if we are to turn the tide on corruption, we must strengthen law enforcement institutions and shield them from external interference or manipulation. Since then, we have made substantial progress in strengthening the state’s ability to deal with corruption,” he said in his weekly newsletter on Monday.
The state’s efforts included the establishment of a Special Tribunal to enable the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) to expedite civil claims against corrupt people and to recover stolen funds.
“The Special Tribunal is a court dedicated to proceedings arising from SIU investigations. This strategy of combining investigations with civil litigation has enabled the SIU and the Special Tribunal to recover stolen money,” he said.
“Over many years corruption has systematically weakened the state, damaged key institutions and eroded the country’s social fabric. The Constitutional Court has said that corruption is “the antithesis of the open, accountable, democratic government required by the Constitution”.
Ramaphosa also doubled down on his announcement during the State of the Nation Address (SONA) last week that the Investigating Directorate (ID) will be made a permanent feature of the NPA.
“This is so that it can deepen its collaboration with other entities in the criminal justice system and enrol more cases in the courts. Consultations are underway on the legislation to give effect to this and to prescribe its powers and safeguard its independence. This also has implications for its funding and operational capacity.
“Once it’s made permanent, the Investigating Directorate will be able to improve the capacity of its existing team of specialist investigators and prosecutors and recruit new ones. We expect that 2023 will be a year of increased activity for the Investigating Directorate as it builds on the sterling work it has done so far.”
The President praised the directorate’s work in preparing cases of “serious corruption including emanating from the State Capture Commission, for trial” as part of the NPA’s plan to deal with state capture and for leading the way in innovation.
“It has been leading an innovative approach to ensuring accountability from those implicated in state capture. As part of its ongoing criminal investigation into complex corruption at Eskom, the NPA’s Investigating Directorate has finalised a comprehensive settlement agreement with an international company, ABB, to pay over R2.5 billion in punitive reparations to South Africa.
“The payment will be made into the Criminal Asset Recovery Account. This is reflective of the NPA’s two-pronged strategy to deal with corruption through prosecuting perpetrators and recovering stolen money,” he said.