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Corruption is theft from the poor, says Blade
MOLAOLE MONTSHO | JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA - Mar 29 2010 16:26
Corruption is theft from the poor, South African Communist Party (SACP) secretary general Blade Nzimande said on Monday.
"It [corruption] undermines our efforts as a country to build a better life for all by diverting the country's resources away from the workers and the poor to that pocket of small elite," he said at the party's anti-corruption seminar in Johannesburg.
He said that the Department of Higher Education, of which he is the minister, was paying particular attention to fighting corruption in institutions of higher learning because some rich people were bribing student leaders to campaign for them.
"For instance, it has come to our attention that some of the legitimate struggles of students against the lack of adequate accommodation are being hijacked by some owners of large apartments, who bribe student leaders to campaign for renting of a particular student accommodation as opposed to the other."
He said young people were vulnerable to bribery because they were poor.
"They are the most affected by unemployment, and figures show that, for instance, of the 6,8-million 18- to 24-year-olds in our country, about 2,8-million of them are neither in an education institution, employment nor training."
These, he said, were reasons to target youth in an anti-corruption campaign.
Nzimande said the media missed the point in reporting about lifestyle audits.
"This is one of the reasons for instance why an honest call by Comrade [Zwelinzima] Vavi and Cosatu [the Congress of South African Trade Unions] for lifestyle audits has been opportunistically appropriated by a sensationalist media, who have turned this into beauty contest, such that it could seriously undermine efforts to fight the scourge of corruption and the exposing of tenderpreneurs."
He said systems within the government, including the South African Revenue Service, needed to be strengthened to expose and crack down on corruption and unexplained wealth amongst public representatives.
"This cannot be left to the whims of the media, who create heroes and villains in order to sell newspapers."
Investigations into journalists' private lives
He also blasted the alleged investigation into journalists' private lives, saying it amounted to an act of corruption.
"This is in itself ... a corrupt activity, that can spread like cancer throughout all of society, beyond just targeting journalists.
"This is a dangerous activity that has the potential to take us back to a period where state institutions were being abused to pursue narrow political agendas ..."
He was referring to an investigation into journalists spearheaded by the African National Congress Youth League.
He said the existence of opportunities for the private accumulation of wealth, instead of societal accumulation of wealth to be shared among all, created opportunities for corruption.
He added that there was a need to explore alternative means to tenders, where feasible.
"Not every government service must be converted into a tender. For instance, there are many government services that can be given to communities directly, non-profit organisations and cooperatives to run, without the involvement of middle men through tenders.
"These may include school-feeding schemes, housing cooperatives, agricultural schemes, and so on."
He said tenders would always be there, so the SACP must watch against the "tenderisation" of the state.
"We should possibly also campaign for a system where, before any decision on a tender is made, an assessment must be made on whether capacity to do such work directly already does not exist within the state or within communities that are the intended beneficiaries."
'Corruption rife in the private sector'
Former judge Willem Heath told the seminar that corruption was more rife in the private sector than the public sector.
"Corruption is committed by greedy rich people in the private sector," Heath said.
He said R1,5-billion was being taken outside South Africa by rich people who avoided paying taxes.
He said though corruption was rife, the majority of cases were not reported, leaving few cases to go to court. Among those that made it to court, the rate of conviction was very low.
"International syndicates study the laws of the country, companies and government departments for loopholes. When they come, they come prepared knowing where to start."
He told the seminar that there was a need for a team of experts to work with the police and the National Prosecuting Authority to ensure that corruption was uprooted.
Nzimande led participants at the seminar in a symbolic whistle-blowing against corruption. -- Sapa
http://www.mg.co.za/article/2010-03-29-corruption-is-theft-from-the-poor-says-blade
Symbolic? Like this...?
Zille: Zuma caught in a 'corruption gridlock'
MICHAEL HAMLYN | CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA - Apr 16 2010 14:07
According to Democratic Alliance (DA) leader Helen Zille, President Jacob Zuma cannot act against corruption in government because he is held in a 'corruption gridlock'.
"Zuma cannot get tough on corruption, even if he wanted to," she said on Friday. "The cronies he relies on for political support benefit from corruption too much. Not only this, the ANC benefits. Most of all, Zuma and his family benefit."
Writing in her weekly online newsletter, SA Today, Zille said that the obvious way to end the descent into a criminal state would be for President Zuma to stop talking about corruption and take decisive action to actually expose and prevent it.
She said he could announce anti-corruption measures, such as preventing political parties from doing business with the state. He could announce laws that prevent government employees from doing business with government. He could stop the deployment of cadres to parastatals and institutions integral to the fight against corruption, such as the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA). And he could reinstate the independence of the criminal justice system to expose and prosecute corruption without fear or favour.
"But he cannot do any of these things without exposing himself and his closest political allies to criminal prosecution. The criminal justice system has been perverted as an instrument for persecuting political opponents and protecting political allies.
"But even this selective use of the criminal justice system is becoming difficult because the entire ANC edifice -- allies and opponents alike -- are caught in what Allister Sparks calls a 'corruption gridlock'. Senior ANC members have so much dirt on each other that they dare not take action against corruption. If one goes down, he will take the rest down with them. This is precisely what Jacob Zuma himself threatened to do when faced with prosecution relating to the arms deal before he became president.
"This explains why the corruption in the arms deal was so successfully covered up. It explains why Julius Malema was able to get away with what he did and said before any rebuke whatsoever from Zuma. It explains why Schabir Shaik is still on medical parole, despite no evidence that he is terminally ill.
'Zuma is paralysed as a president'
"In all of these cases, the ANC leadership is paralysed because of its dubious past and future interest in maintaining the status quo. Zuma cannot go beyond rhetoric and take real action against corruption for fear of alienating those who have enough information to bring him down. His time and energy is spent placating those who hold this power over him instead of governing. This is the consequence of endemic corruption.
"Most people think Zuma needed to avoid jail so he could become president. Actually, the opposite is true. Zuma needed to become president so that he could avoid jail.
"Now that he has succeeded, Zuma is paralysed as a president. You can be sure that nothing will come of his rebuke of Malema. There will be no tough anti-corruption measures taken while he is in office. And, in time, Schabir Shaik will receive a presidential pardon.
"If we dig deep enough, I believe we would discover that Jacob Zuma continues to benefit from corrupt relationships to this day. The lifestyle of his family is too lavish to be affordable on his presidential income. We wonder how he can spend R65-million - which he has insisted is his own money -- renovating his residence at Nkandla. And we marvel at how he can support his wives, his fiancée and 20 children on a single salary.
"But we also know that his family members, including his wives, are involved in over 100 companies -- some of which benefit from state contracts. It was therefore not surprising that Zuma missed the deadline to declare his financial interests by 10 months, and only disclosed his assets when public pressure forced him to. The irresistible inference is that his advisers were sanitising his business interests for public consumption." -- I-Net Bridge
http://www.mg.co.za/article/2010-04-16-zille-zuma-caught-in-a-corruption-gridlock
Stupid communists yapping away about corruption, blaming the "rich", yet making themselves guilty of terrorism, propping up the government criminals.
