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Corruption hot-line steams
19/03/2001 23:54 - (SA)
Dumisane Lubisi
Nelspruit - Over 6 000 cases of fraud and corruption have been reported to Mpumalanga's government anti-corruption hotline over the past year, said provincial director-general Stanley Soko on Monday.
Addressing a media briefing, he said 6 600 cases had been phoned in on the toll free 0800 004 993 number, or reported at the hotline office in the premier's office, in the 12 months since it was established in February last year.
"It has even received calls from people in other provinces on corruption in their area," he said, adding that the information was passed on to the relevant provincial governments.
The hotline is manned by three officials, including an investigator who probes reported cases. They work directly with the Nelspruit fraud and other police units to speed up investigations.
So far, 3 280 cases have been solved, but Soko could not say how many officials had been dismissed.
He said police and national government were currently investigating 1 040 cases.
A total of 4 320 calls were made to the hotline during office hours, another 1 080 were recorded after hours, and 1 200 people reported cases directly to the offices.
Of the cases reported after hours, 380 related to corruption, while the rest were salary queries and requests for advice and information about government.
Of 1 200 people who walked into to report cases, 1 000 reported labour disputes and 200 reported corruption.
Soko said the 200 corruption cases had been referred to the relevant departments for investigation.
Soko said the government's labour relations department had hired qualified attorneys and magistrates to fast track internal disciplinary hearings against officials.
"We don't want a situation where cases drag on for two to three years without being tried," he explained.
Since January, the labour relations directorate has dealt with 58 cases ranging from fraud, theft, corruption and misuse of government vehicles, abscondment, absenteeism and insubordination.
A total of 32 officials have been dismissed, while seven officials were suspended without pay, one demoted and eight were warned.
Another seven were acquitted, while cases against three officials were withdrawn because of lack of evidence.
The government distributes pamphlets at each of its provincial cabinet outreach programmes and at public meetings advertising the hotline number.
It is also printed on government payslips.
The hotline has been especially effective in cutting back on the number of civil servants who use state vehicles for personal use, said Soko.
"We have to go full-force to ensure that vehicles leave government buildings with trip authorities signed by heads of departments," he said.
He said the government had begun blacklisting individuals and companies who enticed government officials into corrupt activities, but he declined to mention names. - African Eye News Service
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