South Africa to the fight against crime and corruption,
Minister of Finance Enoch Godongwana says at least R14 billion is to be allocated to the fight against crime and corruption, Defence Web reported.
The Minister was delivering the 2023 Budget Speech in the Cape Town City Hall on Wednesday.
“The South African Police Service is allocated R7.8 billion to appoint 5000 police trainees per year. The National Prosecuting Authority receives R1.3 billion to support the implementation of the recommendations of the State Capture Commission and the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).
“The Financial Intelligence Centre is allocated an additional R265.3 million to tackle organized and financial crime. The Special Investigating Unit is allocated R100 million to initiate civil litigation in the special tribunal, flowing from proclamations linked to the recommendations of the State Capture Commission.
“The Department of Defence is allocated an additional R3.1 billion to enhance security on South Africa’s borders,” Godongwana said.
On the FATF and South Africa’s possible greylisting by the international body, Godongwana said the country has made substantial progress in “vulnerabilities in the country’s anti-money laundering system”.
“Two laws have been enacted to address the technical deficiencies in the legislative framework, namely the General Laws Amendment Act of 2022, and the Protection of Constitutional Democracy Against Terrorist and Related Activities Amendment Act.
“The laws address 15 of the 20 legislative deficiencies identified by FATF. The remaining five deficiencies will be addressed through regulations and practices that do not require legislation.
“We recognize the need to be more effective in implementing our laws, particularly in fighting organized and sophisticated crimes,” he said.
“Addressing the FATF issues is part of the broader fight against corruption, crime, state capture and the deliberate weakening of the institutions of law and order in our country.
“The FATF Plenary will make its decision later this week on whether or not to put South Africa under increased monitoring, otherwise known as greylisting. We should be prepared for that possibility,” Godongwana said.
