Sixteen suspects - including driving licence examiners and learner licence applicants - appeared in the Durban Specialised Commercial Crimes Court in connection with fraud and corruption allegations, the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) said on Wednesday.
They were arrested at the Howick driving licence testing centre, in the KwaZulu-Natal midlands in March this year, during a major crackdown on corruption related to the fraudulent issuing of driving licences, RTMC spokesperson Simon Zwane said.
The crackdown had been conducted by the RTMC's national anti-corruption unit and the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (The Hawks).
"The arrests followed a long investigation in which officials from the Howick driver learner testing centre were observed engaging in unethical and corrupt conduct," Zwane said in a statement.
The case was postponed to August 7 for further investigation.
"The suspects are out on bail," and more arrests were expected as the investigations continued he added.
"Corruption related to the issuing of driving licence documents is a major concern and is believed to contribute significantly to road accidents in South Africa. A majority of fatal crashes in South Africa are attributed to human error and the ability of the drivers to handle the vehicle plays an important role in this," added Zwane.