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A group of South African law enforcement agencies say they are investigating more than R10.5 billion in potentially corrupt coronavirus spending in South Africa.
This is more than double the amount investigated two months ago, the Special Investigation Unit (SIU) said in a presentation to parliament on Tuesday (October 20).
The SIU said that most of this reported irregular spending was at the provincial government level, and most of the complaints include:
- Overvaluation of personal protective equipment (PPE);
- Possible recoveries related to underdelivery by service providers;
- Service providers won contracts for more than 1 million rand without being registered for VAT;
- The use of emergency provisions was considered incorrect;
- EPI’s price differentiation went beyond market-related prices;
- Service providers charged fees for the supply of PPE higher than the regulated price lists issued by the Treasury;
- Some service providers were found to have only registered with the Business and Intellectual Property Commission during February and March 2020;
- Some service providers were already in the decommissioning process when they listed and were awarded contracts;
- Non-essential goods were acquired under the emergency provisions of Covid-19;
- Certain companies earned BBBEE points as Tier 1 contributors when, in fact, they did not qualify.
The fight against corruption is one of the central axes of South Africa’s new economic recovery plan, says President Cyril Ramaphosa.
In a presentation to parliament on Tuesday (October 20), Ramaphosa said decisive action against crime and corruption is essential for “inclusive growth.”
“The decisive action we have taken to prevent, detect and act against Covid-related corruption will strengthen the broader fight against crime,” Ramaphosa said.
“The Special Investigation Unit has made significant progress in investigating complaints of criminal conduct in all public entities during the state of national disaster.”
Ramaphosa said the SIU’s work and its investigations will be made public once all due process has been completed.
“Law enforcement agencies are being strengthened and provided with adequate resources to allow for the rapid identification and prosecution of corruption and fraud,” he said.
“We wish to assure all South Africans that there will be no political interference in the work of law enforcement agencies.”
Read: South Africa’s updated list of high-risk countries comes at a cost
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