President Cyril Ramaphosa says allowing South Africans to follow the Zondo Commission proceedings has helped to instil public confidence in the country’s democracy by promoting openness and transparency.
“The country owes a debt of gratitude to all who were involved in the work of the commission, from those who investigated, researched and compiled a huge amount of information, to the many witnesses who testified and provided evidence, to the journalists who diligently reported on the proceedings, to the lawyers who helped present evidence.
“We also owe a debt of gratitude to the many individuals, some of whom remain unknown, whose actions led to the establishment of the commission in the first place.
“These are the people who unearthed these alleged criminal acts, who resisted, who spoke out and who took up campaigns both public and behind the scenes to end State capture. It is thanks to them that we now speak of State capture in the past tense,” President Ramaphosa said in his weekly newsletter.
The President last week Wednesday and Thursday appeared before the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture and Corruption (presided over by Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo) in his capacity as the President and former Deputy President of the Republic of South Africa.
The President’s appearance before the Commission follows an undertaking he made in 2018 to provide the commission with any information and assistance it may seek in the fulfilment of its mandate.
President Ramaphosa said State capture did not end of its own accord but was brought to an end by the concerted actions of South Africans from all walks of life, working in various areas to restore the values of the country’s constitutional democracy.
“It is up to all of us to ensure that these practices are never allowed to happen again. Over the past three years, we have taken several important steps to tackle corruption and State capture.
“We have been painstakingly rebuilding bodies like the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), the South African Police Service (SAPS), the South African Revenue Service (SARS) and others. We have set up new structures, like the Investigating Directorate in the NPA, to prosecute high-level corruption and the SIU Special Tribunal to recover stolen public funds.
“We have improved our crime-fighting capacity through the establishment of the Fusion Centre, which brings together various law enforcement agencies to share information and coordinate the investigation and prosecution of crime,” President Ramaphosa said.
He said government has changed leadership at several strategic State-owned enterprises and has begun the process of restoring these SEOs to financial and operational health.
Government is working towards a new SOE model that promotes greater transparency, accountability and sustainability.
“Much of this work is ongoing. There are areas where progress has been far slower than we would have hoped, and these are now receiving closer attention,” the President said.
He said government has acted swiftly to stop corruption and to identify those responsible and to take action against them.
“We tightened up Treasury regulations, established the Fusion Centre and gave the Special Investigating Unit a wide-ranging mandate to investigate all COVID-related corruption allegations. In a first for the country, we also published online the details of all COVID procurement contracts across all public entities.
“The damage done to our country by State capture is deep. Its effects will be felt for many years to come. But, working together, we have started to put things right. We have started to rebuild and restore.
“We can expect that the outcomes of the Zondo Commission will immeasurably strengthen these efforts. They will give us an opportunity to make a decisive and lasting break with the State capture era,” President Ramaphosa said.