“I wish that everybody could make such disclosures because it is the right thing, but our levels of corruption are such that I do not think we in SA can afford the luxury of saying we do not want information that is disclosed by whistle-blowers who want money.”
Zondo raised concerns about the lack of implementation of some of the state capture inquiry's recommendations.
“Most of the corruption we get in SA is in the area of public procurement. If we can close the taps in public procurement, we will make a big difference in our fight against corruption. We recommended the establishment of a public anti-corruption agency. We see that the public procurement bill of 2023 doesn’t have an institution like that.”
Addressing the council, President Cyril Ramaphosa said the government was making headway in implementing the Zondo commission's recommendations.
“The SA Revenue Service has collected R4.9bn in unpaid taxes as a result of evidence brought before the commission. While there is a long road ahead, the fight against corruption is gaining momentum,” he said.
“Corruption has wounded our democracy and shaken people’s faith in our institutions. If corruption is not arrested, the greatest damage will not be in the funds stolen, the jobs lost or the services not delivered. The greatest damage will be to the belief in democracy itself.
“It is our shared responsibility, as we celebrate 30 years of democracy, to build a society in which corruption has no place.”
TimesLIVE
Pay whistle-blowers, says Zondo, as R2.5bn is recovered in state capture probes
Image: Freddy Mavunda
Chief justice Raymond Zondo has urged the government to pay whistle-blowers who provide valuable information.
His stance comes after the National Prosecuting Authority's (NPA) Investigating Directorate (ID) recovered R2.5bn during state capture corruption probes.
Zondo, speaking at a National Anti-Corruption Advisory Council dialogue on Wednesday, said corruption in South Africa necessitated paying whistle-blowers.
“Whistle-blowers helped to stop state capture. Everybody talks about the protection of whistle-blowers, but all of you would be aware the commission went beyond that, recommending we incentivise them to blow the whistle,” he said.
In August, justice minister Ronald Lamola told parliament's portfolio committee on justice and correctional services that the ID recovered R2.5bn in state capture cases alone.
Zondo said whistle-blowers should receive a percentage of the money recovered when information they provided enabled investigators to crack cases.
LISTEN | 'Something needs to be done about corruption or we won't have a country worth calling home' — Zondo
“I wish that everybody could make such disclosures because it is the right thing, but our levels of corruption are such that I do not think we in SA can afford the luxury of saying we do not want information that is disclosed by whistle-blowers who want money.”
Zondo raised concerns about the lack of implementation of some of the state capture inquiry's recommendations.
“Most of the corruption we get in SA is in the area of public procurement. If we can close the taps in public procurement, we will make a big difference in our fight against corruption. We recommended the establishment of a public anti-corruption agency. We see that the public procurement bill of 2023 doesn’t have an institution like that.”
Addressing the council, President Cyril Ramaphosa said the government was making headway in implementing the Zondo commission's recommendations.
“The SA Revenue Service has collected R4.9bn in unpaid taxes as a result of evidence brought before the commission. While there is a long road ahead, the fight against corruption is gaining momentum,” he said.
“Corruption has wounded our democracy and shaken people’s faith in our institutions. If corruption is not arrested, the greatest damage will not be in the funds stolen, the jobs lost or the services not delivered. The greatest damage will be to the belief in democracy itself.
“It is our shared responsibility, as we celebrate 30 years of democracy, to build a society in which corruption has no place.”
TimesLIVE
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