Question NW1108 to the Minister in the Presidency
05 May 2016 - NW1108
Lovemore, Ms AT to ask the Minister in the Presidency
With reference to the reply to question 3977 on 3 December 2015, (a) when was the Anti-Corruption Inter-Ministerial Committee (ACIMC) formed, (b) on what dates has the specified committee met since its inception, (c) what interventions or programmes have been put in place as a result of the existence of the specified committee, (d) what measures does the specified committee utilise to determine the success of its functioning and (e) what are the details of the (i) incidences of public sector corruption and (ii) cost of public sector corruption in each financial year since the inception of the ACIMC?
Reply:
The Anti-Corruption Inter-Ministerial Committee (ACIMC) was established in June 2014. The Committee met in August and September 2014, September and November 2015, March 2016, and approved five programmes which are implemented as follows:
- Communication and Awareness
The key focus of this programme is to communicate government’s efforts and successes in combatting corruption in a consistent manner and to educate South Africans about what constitute corruption and encourage citizens to contribute to a Societal Approach towards preventing and countering corruption.
- Intelligence Coordination, Policy and Strategy Development
To give effect to the government anti-corruption agenda by focusing on intelligence coordination, policy and strategy development.
- Public Sector Policy and Capacity Development
To develop policies and strategy in the public sector to support Government’s anti-corruption agenda and to manage and monitor domestic implementation of and reporting on identified international obligations on anti-corruption.
- Vulnerable Sector Management
To enforce accountability by, inter alia, ensuring enforcement of statutory and regulatory in government business, systems improvements; litigation where appropriate in order recover government losses and also assist in preparation of criminal cases.
- Crime Operations and Resolutions.
To deal with Criminal Investigations and Resolutions (prosecutions) in terms of identified National Priorities and Criminal Asset Recoveries. To ensure coordination of activities of all law enforcement agencies involved in the process of Anti-Corruption Criminal Investigation.
A total of 203 corruption priority cases involving 1065 persons were investigated. The total number of persons convicted since 2009 to date is 116. Thus between 2009 and 2014, a total number of 63 persons were convicted. During the financial year 2014/2015; a total number of 23 persons were convicted. During the financial year 2015/2016; a total number of 30 persons were convicted. Investigations in 11 cases are currently underway in relation to possible contraventions of the OECD Foreign Bribery Convention.
Freezing orders to the value of R 601 million were obtained by the end of the 3rd Quarter of the 2015/16 financial year, which has contributed to a cumulative total of R4.21 Billion since 2009.
Proceeds of crime and government losses to the value of close to R 71 million were recovered by the end of the 3rd Quarter of the 2015/16 financial year, which contributed to a cumulative total of R1.96 billion since 2009.
Over and above the successes referred to in the preceding paragraphs, government has through the Specialised Commercial Crime Unit (SCCU), made significant advances in securing convictions in cases other than the priority cases stipulated in the MTSF. Since 2012 the SCCU has obtained the conviction of about three thousand, three hundred and forty individuals for serious corruption and or serious financial and economic crimes.
A total of 234 government officials were convicted for corruption related offences from 2014/15 financial year to date. However note should be taken that the monitoring of conviction was negatively affected by the disbandment of the JCPS Anti-Corruption Working Group (ACWG) and the under-reporting of disciplinary cases instituted by departments.