News24.com | 'Substantial progress' made in strengthening state's ability to deal with corruption - Ramaphosa

President Cyril Ramaphosa delivers his 2023 State of the Nation Address.

• President Cyril Ramaphosa said the government made substantial progress in strengthening the state's ability to deal with corruption.
• Its efforts saw the establishment of a Special Tribunal to enable the Special Investigating Unit to expedite civil claims against corrupt people and to recover stolen funds, he said.
• He added that the value of civil litigation referred to the High Court and Special Tribunal amounted to R75 billion.

President Cyril Ramaphosa says the government has made substantial progress in strengthening the state's ability to deal with corruption, since he made a commitment in his 2018 State of the Nation Address to root it out.

"I said that if we are to turn the tide on corruption, we must strengthen law enforcement institutions and shield them from external interference or manipulation. Since then, we have made substantial progress in strengthening the state's ability to deal with corruption," he said in his weekly newsletter on Monday.

The state's efforts included the establishment of a Special Tribunal to enable the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) to expedite civil claims against corrupt people and to recover stolen funds.

"The Special Tribunal is a court dedicated to proceedings arising from SIU investigations. This strategy of combining investigations with civil litigation has enabled the SIU and the Special Tribunal to recover stolen money," he said.

As of March 2022, Ramaphosa added, the value of civil litigation referred to the High Court and the Special Tribunal amounted to R75 billion.

Ramaphosa added: "This is roughly equivalent to what was budgeted for the child support grant this year."

Around 119 cases worth more than R12 billion have been enrolled at the Special Tribunal.

The second step was the establishment of the Investigating Directorate (ID) in the office of the National Director of Public Prosecutions in 2019, to prosecute serious organised crime and corruption cases.

He said 2023 was expected to be a "year of increased activity for the Investigating Directorate as it builds on the sterling work it has done so far. Since its establishment, the ID has been preparing several cases of serious corruption, including those emanating from the state capture commission, for trial. This forms part of the NPA's priority plan to deal with state capture and high-level corruption," Ramaphosa said.

A total of 187 accused persons have been taken to court in 32 state capture and corruption cases, and approximately R12.9 billion in funds and assets have been frozen.

Ramaphosa continued: 

"Consultations are under way on the legislation to give effect to this to prescribe its powers and safeguard its independence. This also has implications for its funding and operational capacity," he added.

The Investigating Directorate's investigators have been seconded by the Hawks. Once the directorate is made permanent, it will be able to improve the capacity of its existing team of specialist investigators and prosecutors and recruit new ones, he added.

"Over many years, corruption has systematically weakened the state, damaged key institutions and eroded the country's social fabric," Ramaphosa said.

"We set up world-class institutions before. Now is the time to rebuild our institutions so that they are able to stand the test of time and advance the values and vision of our constitutional democracy."