South Africa will never get rid of corruption if good people in the African National Congress close ranks and stay silent‚ elder statesman Archbishop Njongo Ndungane said on Friday.
The former Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town said corruption resulted in the public’s money intended for basic services such as water and housing ended up “in the pockets of corrupt officials” and weakened human rights.
Ndungane was speaking on International Anti-corruption Day at the Claremont Main Road Mosque in Cape Town. He named five institutions that must act to root out corruption.
Religious bodies must speak out‚ adding that the church “has been far too quiet”.
Civil society must continue to hold government and business to account. He singled out Corruption Watch as an excellent organisation that provides a platform for reporting corruption safely and that it monitored the progress of each case. The Helen Suzman Foundation and Freedom Under Law showed how civil society “can use its considerable influence and resources to ensure that moral values replace questionable ones”.
Third on Ndungane’s list was commerce and industry. He took them to task for sitting on the sidelines and became “embroiled in the life of our society only when major crises occur”.
“Commerce and industry are corporate citizens and need to be at the cutting edge of highlighting corruption‚ and finding ways and means of combating it‚” he noted.
Political parties who tolerate leaders who have flouted the Constitution “corrode our society”.
“We cannot afford to have these people closing ranks to protect each other or the party. Recent developments in the African National Congress have rocked us all backwards. Just last week‚ we were hearing that a motion of no confidence had been brought against its president by the national executive of the ANC. And yet‚ by the end of the meeting‚ this most powerful body had closed ranks.
“But I want to say without hesitation that we will never get rid of corruption if good people close ranks like this and stay silent.”
The fifth‚ and most important‚ Ndungane said‚ was government at all levels‚ which must root out bribery and corruption among civil servants and “the political bosses to whom these civil servants report”.
Five ways to root out corruption - elder statesman Ndungane
South Africa will never get rid of corruption if good people in the African National Congress close ranks and stay silent‚ elder statesman Archbishop Njongo Ndungane said on Friday.
The former Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town said corruption resulted in the public’s money intended for basic services such as water and housing ended up “in the pockets of corrupt officials” and weakened human rights.
Ndungane was speaking on International Anti-corruption Day at the Claremont Main Road Mosque in Cape Town. He named five institutions that must act to root out corruption.
Religious bodies must speak out‚ adding that the church “has been far too quiet”.
Civil society must continue to hold government and business to account. He singled out Corruption Watch as an excellent organisation that provides a platform for reporting corruption safely and that it monitored the progress of each case. The Helen Suzman Foundation and Freedom Under Law showed how civil society “can use its considerable influence and resources to ensure that moral values replace questionable ones”.
Third on Ndungane’s list was commerce and industry. He took them to task for sitting on the sidelines and became “embroiled in the life of our society only when major crises occur”.
“Commerce and industry are corporate citizens and need to be at the cutting edge of highlighting corruption‚ and finding ways and means of combating it‚” he noted.
Political parties who tolerate leaders who have flouted the Constitution “corrode our society”.
“We cannot afford to have these people closing ranks to protect each other or the party. Recent developments in the African National Congress have rocked us all backwards. Just last week‚ we were hearing that a motion of no confidence had been brought against its president by the national executive of the ANC. And yet‚ by the end of the meeting‚ this most powerful body had closed ranks.
“But I want to say without hesitation that we will never get rid of corruption if good people close ranks like this and stay silent.”
The fifth‚ and most important‚ Ndungane said‚ was government at all levels‚ which must root out bribery and corruption among civil servants and “the political bosses to whom these civil servants report”.
Would you like to comment on this article?
Register (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Trending
Latest Videos