Category: Industry

Minister in the Presidency, Mondli Gungubele, says the importance of whistle blowers in the fight against corruption cannot be underestimated.

The Minister was speaking during a picket commemorating International Anti-Corruption Day held at the Government Communication and Information System (GCIS) head office on Thursday.

“I want to express our unwavering commitment to the protection of whistle blowers and also our preparedness to deal with our weaknesses where they exist because without [whistle blowers] the struggle against corruption is going to be a very long journey.

“I call upon [whistle blowers] to not stop their bravery and to continue to advise on what are the weaknesses in the machinery to protect whistle blowers,” Gungubele said.

Minister Gungubele said corruption undermines the state’s delivery of services to the people.

“It undermines the ability of investors to actually invest in this country, make a profit, create opportunities, absorb employment and also create opportunities to ensure that there is revenue that comes to the state so that the state can use that money to take care of the vulnerable. It is the worst crime against humanity,” he said.

GCIS Director General Phumla Williams called on civil servants to act against those who perpetrate corrupt acts and to guard themselves in participating in it.

“We tend to talk about corruption in big projects, in big tenders but corruption starts with small acts…not opening an office when you are supposed to open it to serve the people, wanting to be paid a bribe to do what you are supposed to do,” she said.

Williams added that although there remains some in the public service who do wrong, most civil servants do their duties with integrity.

“I am proud to come out with the whole team of GCIS to say: Not in our name. We will do what we can to stop corruption. A lot of public servants are honest and a lot of public servants know what is expected of them. That’s what we are raising … all is not lost,” she said.

At the Anti-Corruption day picket, Special Investigating Unit Head, Advocate Andy Mothibi, reiterated the unit’s stance on taking on corruption investigations in the public service.

“Today we are raising up the heat as we continue to investigate [corruption]. This day is marked with enthusiasm because we have committed to give [President Cyril Ramaphosa] the report on the PPE investigations tomorrow and [the report] will make sure that we hold all of those to account.

“We must all gear up to fight the scourge of corruption and root it out wherever it rears its head. When we find evidence, it doesn’t matter who you are … we investigate the allegations without fear, favour or prejudice,” Mothibi said.

Source: South African Government News Agency

In an attempt to boost its fight against the scourge of gender-based violence (GBV) and unemployment, the KwaZulu-Natal Government has employed new social workers to provide much-needed psychosocial support to GBV victims.

Social Development MEC, Nonhlanhla Khoza said about 967 social workers are tasked with the responsibility to provide care and support to victims of gender-based violence. They are also tasked with ensuring that victims are well prepared to face their perpetrators in court in order to ensure successful prosecutions.

Khoza said that an amount of R23 220 million has been set aside for the employment of social workers who will give a much-needed boost to the work done by the department to fight the scourge.

“The province is currently saddled by the scourge of gender-based violence, including rape and abuse, which leave victims shattered for life. The department has sent an application to Treasury to be allowed to employ social workers because of the high demand observed due to the high number of cases of gender-based violence.

“There are about 967 social workers employed and deployed across the province, with each district receiving 80 social workers, while eThekwini receives 167 social workers due to its vastness. These social workers reported on duty from 01 December 2021 and are employed on four months’ contracts,” said the MEC.

She added that the social workers came in handy to reinforce teams that are implementing the department’s mandate, including the implementation of preventative measures, education and steps to tackle the abuse, often faced by women and children in society.

Khoza noted that the social workers are graduate social workers who have not been employed since they left university.

“Some of them have used all their family savings to pay for their studies, while others were funded by government. Most of these graduates are busy with documentation such as registering with tax from South African Revenue Services (SARS) because they have never been employed before.”

About 485 were captured on the Personal and Salary System (PERSAL) and will receive their payment by the end of the month.

While acknowledging that the employment of social workers is not permanent, Khoza said it is a positive effort towards dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic and the high unemployment rate.

“In the future, we would like to absorb them to help us in the fight against the challenges we face in communities. Our department is central to all efforts to reduce the levels of social ills and vulnerability. Therefore, the employment of these social workers are much-needed to address the social ills,” the MEC said.

Source: South African Government News Agency

Public Service and Administration Minister Ayanda Dlodlo says the fight against corruption is one of the “most defining struggles” the country will face.

She was addressing the Public Service Commission’s International Anti-Corruption Day commemoration on Thursday.

Minister Dlodlo emphasised that good ethics, integrity and commitment is “desperately needed” in the battle against corruption.

“As a country we successfully fought Apartheid. Now is the time to stand together to fight corruption as this is plausibly one of the most defining struggles of our time. It is a priority fight precisely because there is far too much at stake while both developing and developed countries are battling with this scourge,” she said.

The Minister said fighting corruption will take a concerted effort not only from government but also from civil society, business and the citizenry.

“Fighting corruption is not a simple task. It is a fight that concerns everyone and requires everyone’s involvement to prevent its manifestation or to act decisively to wrongdoing. It calls not just for the dedication of independent anti-corruption in preventing, detecting and holding corrupt officials accountable, but also by the active involvement of citizens by saying no to corruption, not turning a blind eye and demanding transparency and accountability from those they vote into public office,” she said.

Dlodlo hailed public servants who have and are exposing corruption in their workplaces.

“I want to unequivocally and openly state that I support you. I regard you as heroes and heroines of the struggle against corruption. If it were not for whistle blowers, we as a country would not have known about the level of rot facing us until it would have been too late.

“I urge those in leadership positions to act ethically at all times, create an environment where everyone will know that ethical conduct is expected and also rewarded,” said the Minister.

Source: South African Government News Agency

The Presidential Climate Commission (PCC) is expected to hold public consultations on the country’s move towards decarbonisation and the just energy transition next year.

This was revealed by PCC deputy Chairperson Valli Moosa in his address to the annual national summit of the National Economic Development and Labour Council (Nedlac).

The South African economy remains heavily reliant on burning carbon fuels like coal for electricity to power, amongst others, manufacturing, farming and mining – causing some 41% of the country’s carbon emissions.

Moosa said the country’s reliance on coal could have an economic impact on many sectors.

“[T]he climate transition is…likely to have negative social and economic impacts, particularly on workers involved in the coal value chain as it downsizes, and communities in coal mining areas where limited other economic opportunities exist.

“The PCC plans to meet directly with those affected like coal miners who have already lost jobs, workers in coal-fired power stations who are understandably feeling insecure, as well as members of surrounding communities that are dependent on mining activities to support their livelihoods,” he said.

The PCC deputy chairperson added that consultations would also take place with people who have already been affected by climate change events such as flooding and drought.

The consultations, he said, will lead up to a national conference on the just energy transition which is expected to be held in March next year.

“Our intention is to hand over a report on the just transition to the government and other social partners. Finding common ground in the PCC will require a lot of energy from all parties, and in the past year we have all done to the best of our ability, but we must do more. The climate transition has serious long-term development and economic impacts, and decisions about the path we follow must involve everyone that is affected”.

The pace of a just transition

Moosa warned that although the move towards a low-carbon emissions economy remains an important developmental and economic imperative, the transition must be made at a pace best suited for the country.

“If we move too fast, we will devastate high-emitting economic sectors and jobs before we have built up capacity in other sectors. If we move too slowly, we will suffer trade restrictions on our emissions intensive products and miss out on the technological innovation and investment that underpins long-term economic competitiveness and jobs.

“However, let me be clear: the pace at which we decarbonise must be our decision, made in our own economic interests,” Moosa said.

Moosa said despite some of the challenges that may arise during the transition towards a greener economy, “significant opportunities” will come to fruition as well.

“We have some of the best renewable energy resources in the world. We have significant untapped deposits of the minerals required for the future global green economy – the platinum group metals (PMGs), iron and steel, manganese, copper, lithium, cobalt, and rare earths metals.

“We are also well positioned to produce green hydrogen with indigenous technologies at prices than are more competitive than other countries. The good news is that a future green economy will create more jobs in new low-carbon sectors than are lost in declining fossil fuel sectors”.

Source: South African Government News Agency