Corruption robs the poor of a decent living: Zondo

Chief Justice Raymond Zondo has lamented corruption and argues that it robs poor South Africans of decent living conditions.

Speaking at the second day of the commemoration of International Anti-Corruption Day at UNISA in Pretoria, Zondo zoomed in on state-owned entities including Prasa.

Prasa is a public entity wholly-owned by government and reports to the Minister of Transport, however, the state entity has been a victim of corruption.

In his State Capture Report, Zondo recommended the establishment of a Commission of Inquiry to investigate the corruption at the SOE.

Zondo says South Africans suffered a reality where they were not afforded safe, reliable and essential transport due to “maladministration, incompetence and mismanagement.”

“Prasa is a very important state entity that was established in order to provide very essential transport to the people of South Africa, particularly poor people but Prasa has not been able to provide a safe and reliable transport service to poor people in our country. The Portfolio Committee on Transport in Parliament, which had a constitutional duty to oversee what was happening at Prasa, was not interested in asking very pertinent questions in order to turn around the tide of corruption at Prasa.”

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Speaking at same event, Chairperson of the Public Service Commission, Prof Somadoda Fikeni, says corruption has made government lose public confidence.

He has warned that corruption will have what he terms a corrosive impact on South Africa if it is not urgently addressed.

Fikeni says corruption is threatening the strides that have been made and robbing the most vulnerable.

He adds, “What is the moral code or immorality code of a society where funerals of liberation icons become corruption schemes? What is the moral code or immorality code of a society where corruption goes on an overdrive during the existential crisis of COVID-19? And what is the moral code or immorality code of a society where citizenship and some of the critical permits to be in the country can be sold for R500 as if it’s a clearance sale on a Black Friday?”