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Corruption syphons billions

South Africans are fast asleep to a corrupt practice that costs the government billions of rand. Public Protector Thuli Madonsela warned business leaders in Stellenbosch yesterday about how corrupt government officials and business were siphoning large sums of public money by submitting false bills to government departments. “This country has not even woken up to the problem of false billing. My team and I suspect that our government is losing billions [of rand],” she said. Madonsela wants to launch a full systemic investigation next year to see how much the government loses through false billing. False billing happens when public officials and businesses collude to siphon money from government coffers for services that weren’t rendered.

“Travelling and hospitality services have specifically been fingered in this regard,” she said. Madonsela said her investigators had found false billing when they recently investigated contracts between On-Point Engineering and the Limpopo Department of Transport. The Public Protector found On-Point and former ANC Youth League leader Julius Malema benefited improperly from the contract, while the tenders were unlawful. She said her investigations into the RDP housing and medicine and equipment shortages, book distribution, scholar transport and feeding schemes had all pointed to problems with false billing.

“If these allegations [of false billing] prove to be true, this means that public money that is meant to procure goods and services, meant to alleviate poverty and underdevelopment, including health care and education, is syphoned off to line the already swollen pockets of tenderpreneurs,” said Madonsela. She said South Africa had made progress but it had been “stunted by various forms of maladministration, including corruption”. Madonsela said the recent census results showed how corruption was slowing down development and letting inequality persist. “We committed ourselves, together with other nations, to halve poverty by 2015, but the census results tell a different story.

“Unemployment is at about 25 percent, with 50 percent of our young people being without jobs.” She asked business leaders and society not to turn a blind eye to corruption and to work with institutions such as the Special Investigating Unit, the Auditor-General and her office to combat it. “Turning a blind eye is not helpful, and we can’t just complain about it. We all have to do something… it must be a national quest,” Madonsela said.

Source: www.iol.co.za

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Corruption syphons billions

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