Corruption crackdown: 97 government and SOE officials referred for disciplinary action

The Fusion Centre referred 97 government and state-owned enterprises officials for disciplinary action since its formation in May 2020.

This was confirmed by Hawks boss Lieutenant General Godfrey Lebeya during a media briefing on the achievements and accomplishments of the Fusion Centre.

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The Fusion Centre was established in May 2020 by the anti-corruption task team and the national priority operational committee as a multidisciplinary and collaborative effort in the prevention and combatting of corruption and money laundering.

The initial focus of the Fusion Centre was on money laundering, corruption and other financial crimes related to procurement of personal protective equipment during the Covid-19 pandemic.

According to Lebeya, public officials were involved in some of the cases of maladministration or did not follow the legislative frameworks in the appointment of service providers, and payments made to service providers and third parties.

There were 97 referrals for disciplinary and executive actions against officials in government departments and state-owned entities.

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Of these, 11 public officials were dismissed for various cases of maladministration, fraud and corruption.

Three have resigned, eight were suspended, and 71 cases are still pending, while one has received a written warning.

Other referrals include 58 cases to the Competition Commission, 57 to the South African Health Product Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) and 29 companies referred to National Treasury to blacklist them on the Central Suppliers Database (CSD) and 47 referrals from SIU to NPA and DPCI.

Fusion Centre cases

The Fusion Centre investigated 556 cases and an incident of fraud, maladministration and tax evasion.

Corruption cases involving 168 accused persons were secured before the various courts in the country, said Lebeya.

He said 51 natural persons and 43 entities were convicted for various crimes, including corruption, fraud, tax evasion and money laundering.

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43 cases are still pending before the various courts.

One of the cases involved an accountant who defrauded the Ters scheme of more than R11 million by claiming relief funds on behalf of a number of companies without their knowledge.

In the case, 17 persons, 26 entities, 53 banking accounts and 983 transactions were involved in the flow of financial proceeds from the accountant.

The accountant, Lindelani Bert Gumede, was arrested and convicted for fraud, theft and money laundering.

He was sentenced in 2022 to a total of 135 years in prison.

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Other freezing orders and recoveries include:

• The FIC obtained 25 orders worth R274 million
• The AFU obtained 42 orders worth over R331 million
• The SIU obtained 29 orders amounting to R465 million
• Sars obtained 22 freezing orders worth over R740 million

“The results of our collective efforts show that a number of arrests and convictions have been secured and the proceeds removed from those who have been involved in fraud, corruption and money laundering,” said Lebeya.

“These actions show that the government’s investment in fighting financial crime is reaping rewards and that the agencies with individual mandates and focus areas can work together effectively to expedite the fight against financial crime. The work of the Fusion Centre has shown that with this focus, individual departments and agencies can help end financial crime.”

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