Youth keen whistle-blowers, Corruption Watch says
PUBLIC advocacy group Corruption Watch received 17% more tip-offs last year than in 2013.
It said it had seen noticeable interest among the youth in reporting corruption as they increasingly viewed corruption and problems in service delivery as two sides of the same coin.
The group said in its annual report for 2014, which it released yesterday, that it had received 2,714 reports of corruption during the year, or an average of seven a day.
The quality of reporting was steadily improving with a greater proportion of reports being confirmed as corruption; this amounted to 56% last year.
Gauteng accounted for most reports — as in pre- vious years — with 44% last year, up from 38% in 2013.
This was followed by KwaZulu-Natal with 16% and the Free State at 10%.
The sectors appearing most often in reports were schools (20%); traffic and licensing (12%); and immigration (5%).
A quarter of complaints about corruption in housing came from Gauteng.
Since its establishment in 2012, Corruption Watch has received 8,181 reports.
“The situation is really dire,” executive director David Lewis said.
“While we have an impressive array of laws and institutions dedicated to combating corruption, the reality is that many of our leaders act with absolute impunity. This brings the laws into contempt and erodes public trust in the institutions.”
According to the report, notable achievements last year included a preliminary investigation of allegations of fraud and theft involving officials in the South African Municipal Workers Union, which led to court proceedings.
A probe of alleged corruption at the National Health Laboratory Services by the Hawks, involving irregular expenditure of R18m, was also a highlight.
Corruption Watch is also seeking access to documents relating to a multimillionrand water tank project for low-cost housing in KwaZulu-Natal where alleged irregularities include the duplication of beneficiaries.
The quality of reporting is improving, with more reports being confirmed