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Johannesburg - Ministers who fail to comply with legislation on the declaration of their private business interests will face financial penalties, cabinet said on Tuesday.
The government has recently come under increasing pressure to act on this issue, especially after the public protector found that President Jacob Zuma himself had failed to disclose business interests.
Government spokesperson Themba Maseko said cabinet has put the penalties in place as an interim measure while a review of the legislation is under way.
These interim sanctions include a fine not exceeding the value of 30 days' salary, and a reduction of salary or allowances for a period not exceeding 15 days.
Current laws just don't do the job
"The (cabinet) meeting noted that the minister of justice and constitutional development was finalising a comprehensive report that would address all the issues and gaps that were identified by the public protector," said Maseko.
"This report is expected to reach cabinet no later than November 2010."
The public protector's investigation into ministers and their disclosure of personal interests found that 40% of all ministers had not disclosed their interests within 60 days of taking office, as required by law.
While the public protector did not release the names of individual ministers, there is increasing pressure on cabinet to review and enforce ethics laws.
Research by the Institute for Security Studies reinforced the urgency of addressing the situation. It stated the system and accompanying legislation designed to monitor any overlap between business and politics is simply not working.
Politicians and bureaucrats, according to the research, can easily get away with hiding and withholding uncomfortable or illegal truths about their private business interests or liabilities.
- Fin24.com
The government has recently come under increasing pressure to act on this issue, especially after the public protector found that President Jacob Zuma himself had failed to disclose business interests.
Government spokesperson Themba Maseko said cabinet has put the penalties in place as an interim measure while a review of the legislation is under way.
These interim sanctions include a fine not exceeding the value of 30 days' salary, and a reduction of salary or allowances for a period not exceeding 15 days.
Current laws just don't do the job
"The (cabinet) meeting noted that the minister of justice and constitutional development was finalising a comprehensive report that would address all the issues and gaps that were identified by the public protector," said Maseko.
"This report is expected to reach cabinet no later than November 2010."
The public protector's investigation into ministers and their disclosure of personal interests found that 40% of all ministers had not disclosed their interests within 60 days of taking office, as required by law.
While the public protector did not release the names of individual ministers, there is increasing pressure on cabinet to review and enforce ethics laws.
Research by the Institute for Security Studies reinforced the urgency of addressing the situation. It stated the system and accompanying legislation designed to monitor any overlap between business and politics is simply not working.
Politicians and bureaucrats, according to the research, can easily get away with hiding and withholding uncomfortable or illegal truths about their private business interests or liabilities.
- Fin24.com
