SA slides again on corruption index

Amid repeated promises by President Cyril Ramaphosa that his government will take a hard line on corruption, a new index indicates South Africa is heading in the wrong direction.

Transperancy International released its annual Corruption Perception Index (2017) on Wednesday, the same day South Africa's finance minister outlined the government's new budget.

It was also revealed that Malusi Gigaba - while still in his post as Minister of Home Affairs - breached the Constitution when he lied under oath in a court case involving the controvercial Gupta family.

The index ranks 180 countries around the world - one being ranked as least corrupt.

It also scores individual countries on a scale of 0 to 100 - 100 being the cleanest.

South Africa recorded a score of 43, two points worse than the 45 it recorded in 2016.

"Again this year, we have declined slightly, and we are in that category of countries... that have a serious corruption problem," says Corruption Watch Director David Lewis.

While South Africa scored the highest of its BRICS partners, it ranked nine out of the 10 Sub-Saharan African countries ranked in the index.

Lewis explains it could have been much worse for South Africa had corruption gone unchallenged.

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"The results for South Africa demonstrate that once again, its sound institutions - financial, judicial and others - protect the country," reads a report by Corruption Watch on the index.

It adds however, the true test will be whether law enforcement agencies are able to bring corrupt individuals to book.

The Hawks has recently moved in on a number of individuals implicated in so-called #StateCapture.

At least eight suspects have appeared in the Bloemfontein Magistrate's Court in connection with the Estina Dairy Project in the Free State.