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South Africans: say no to bribery

17 November 2010

The government has called on South Africans to play their part in stamping out public service corruption in the country by refusing to pay bribes and reporting officials who solicit bribes.

"When one pays a bribe, one is not only a victim of a crime, but also a willing participant in the criminal act," government spokesperson Themba Maseko said in a statement this week.

"To root out corruption, citizens must work together with the authorities and report all unlawful incidents at their local police station."

The call comes in the the wake of an informal poll conducted by Lead SA in collaboration with Primedia Broadcasting and Independent Newspapers which demonstrated South Africans' concern over alleged corruption among Metro Police officials.

Maseko said that while the government welcomed such initiatives to identify corruption and bring it to the attention of the country's law enforcement agencies, the government called equally strongly on all South Africans to join the fight against corruption.

"Citizens have no right to complain about public service corruption when they are the ones offering bribes or trying to circumvent due process," he said, adding that most public servants, including Metro Police, were hard-working, committed professionals wishing to contribute to the country's development.

The government, he said, had consistently stated its determination to root out corruption at all levels. It had made it quite clear that bribery would not be tolerated, and that officials found guilty of such conduct would face the full might of the law.

Source: BuaNews-Xinhua