President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Monday that the fight against State capture and corruption is gaining momentum.

He wrote in his weekly letter to the nation that in the last few months, several cases have been brought to court, with former executives of State-owned enterprises (SOEs) Eskom and Transnet charged alongside business people for allegedly colluding to steal public funds.

He said progress is also being made in other areas where there has been malfeasance.

Ramaphosa is facing backlash for allegedly violating the Constitution following the release of a Section 89 panel report, which made damning findings against him in relation to the theft of money from his Phala Phala farm.

While many are calling for Ramaphosa to step down, others claim the report findings are being used by those implicated in corruption to push Ramaphosa out of the running for the African National Congress presidency, and ultimately, State President.

Ramaphosa explained that the announcement by the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) last week that it had reached a settlement with an international company implicated in corruption at Eskom is a huge development in the country’s effort to hold those responsible for State capture to account.

The NPA Investigating Directorate finalised a landmark agreement with Swiss engineering company ABB to pay R2.5-billion in punitive reparations to South Africa relating to bribes allegedly paid to obtain contracts with Eskom between 2014 and 2017.

“This amount, which will be paid into the Criminal Asset Recovery Account, is in addition to R1.6-billion that ABB paid Eskom in 2020 to settle an investigation into allegedly criminal conduct involving contracts at the Kusile power station. Importantly, the current settlement does not indemnify the company or its staff from prosecution,” explained Ramaphosa.

He noted that for the last five years, South Africa has been working hard to end the looting of resources and to prosecute those responsible and recover stolen funds.

“When we embarked on this journey, we understood that the results would not be felt overnight. We first had to rebuild State institutions that had been deliberately weakened, emptied of expertise and rendered incapable of preventing capture by criminal elements. We had to strengthen law enforcement institutions and shield them from outside interference,” he said.

He went on to say one of the most important steps the country took was to establish, in 2019, the Investigating Directorate in the NPA to deal with cases emanating from the State capture commission and other corruption-related offences.

He added that recently plans to make the Investigating Directorate a permanent structure were announced.

FIGHTING CORRUPTION

Meanwhile, the Special Investigating Unit continues with its investigations into corruption and mismanagement at State institutions and SOEs, with its Special Tribunal empowered to recover stolen funds. 

The South African Revenue Service continues to fight corruption through lifestyle audits and other legislative tools. It is piloting a new wealth initiative to recover assets suspected of having been acquired illegally or through the proceeds of crime. 

Ramaphosa highlighted that the NPA, through the Investigating Directorate, the Asset Forfeiture Unit and other structures, is successfully using preservation orders, asset forfeiture and other tools to tighten the noose around those involved in corrupt activities. 

“Many of those involved in State capture and their enablers in the private sector saw nothing wrong with diverting public funds to private pockets. At the height of the State capture era, unscrupulous politicians repurposed State institutions for private enrichment and to cover their tracks,” he said.

He said today South Africa has law enforcement authorities and a prosecuting authority devoted to investigating and prosecuting without fear or favour, as well as State institutions committed to fulfilling their respective mandates regardless of the status or influence of any individual or a company.