OWN CORRESPONDENT, Johannesburg | Tuesday 8.45pm.
ABOUT 50 percent of South African politicians and civil servants are perceived to be corrupt by the international community, the corruption watchdog Transparency International said in a report released on Tuesday.
South African ranks as the 34th least corrupt country out of 99 in Transparency International’s (TI) latest Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), Vusi Mavuso, the chairman of the body’s south African branch said.
Denmark is considered the least corrupt state followed by Finland and New Zealand. Cameroon is perceived as the most likely state to be troubled by corruption, followed by Nigeria and Indonesia.
“As unquantified and generalised as they are, these perceptions are real and should be taken seriously,” Mavuso told reporters in Johannesburg.
He said South Africa’s ranking should be considered as a “wake up call” because although the country was concentrating on anti-corruption strategies, more could be done.
Mavuso said South Africa could “go one way or another” as the economy was still Developing.
“Only the successful development and implementation of an anti-corruption strategy will in the long run change reality and practice thereby changing perceptions.”
Transparency International SA chief executive Stiaan van der Merwe said it appeared that the country’s business sector bribed officials in other countries, especially in southern Africa. — AFP