Government’s efforts to root out corruption continue to yield results, President Cyril Ramaphosa said during the first State of the Nation Address (SoNA) of the sixth administration.
President Ramaphosa said government has taken decisive steps to end State capture and fight corruption. These measures include strengthening the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), Special Investigating Unit (SIU), South African Revenue Service (SARS) and State Security.
Despite this, the President said, much more work needed to be done.
“We are committed to building an ethical State in which there is no place for corruption, patronage, rent-seeking and plundering of public money.
We want a corps of skilled and professional public servants of the highest moral standards – and dedicated to the public good.
“We have asked the National Director of Public Prosecutions to develop a plan to significantly increase the capacity and effectiveness of the NPA, including to ensure effective asset forfeiture. We need to ensure that public money stolen is returned and used to deliver services and much needed basic infrastructure to the poorest communities.”
The recently set up SIU Special Tribunal is expected to start its work within the next few months to fast track civil claims arising from SIU investigations, which are currently estimated to be around R14.7 billion.
President Ramaphosa said work to rebuild and address problems of poor governance, inefficiency and financial sustainability has already begun.
He added that government had announced the reconfiguration of a number of government departments to enable them to deliver on their mandates.
“Our decision was premised on efficiency, cost-containment, cooperative governance and strategic alignment.”
He added that the process was part of a wider process of arresting the decline in state capacity and restructuring the model of service delivery so it best serves our citizens. SAnews.gov.za
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