South Africa’s president, Cyril Ramaphosa has stepped up efforts to crackdown on corruption in the country.
The country’s Justice Minister, Michael Masutha on Tuesday revealed that the government will probe allegations that state attorneys defrauded government of billions of dollars by deliberately losing cases.
As he seeks to restore investor confidence after the scandal-plagued Jacob Zuma era, Cyril Ramaphosa has made the fight against corruption a key pillar of his administration.
The Special Investigating Unit (SIU), a state agency which probes malpractice in government, has been mandated to look into hundreds of cases where state attorneys were accused of colluding with private lawyers to agree on the settlement of fictitious claims.
“The investigation will help the Department of Justice to lay to rest, concerns that have been raised,” Masutha told reporters during a press briefing.
He added: “Where appropriate … disciplinary action as well as criminal investigations will be initiated against alleged perpetrators to ensure that firm action is taken to uproot corrupt activities.”
In the health ministry, one of the departments worst affected by the alleged fraud, claims totalling 56 billion rand ($4 billion) will be investigated.
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