In Fin24 of 7 November 2017 Liesl Peyper asked: "Could a wholesale amnesty for individuals and companies involved in corruption help South Africa combat this scourge that has become entrenched in almost all sectors of society?"
It is a substantial question and should be granted more journalistic oxygen to influence government to adopt such a measure. Why? Because the depth and width of corruption was/is so chronic that it will take a few decades to bring perpetrators to book, and at enormous cost to South Africans in financial, social, emotional (mainly continuing despair) and economic terms.
The latter costs are manifested in many ways, including in the form of the most important factor of production in economic growth, human capital (and specifically entrepreneurs, of all hues) leaving the country in ever-increasing numbers. Highly educated and skilled entrepreneurs, and other committed workers, are welcomed with open arms by countries with declining populations. These are mainly English-speaking countries, where South Africans settle down easily and quickly become productive citizens.
It is axiomatic that a high level of growth (as achieved under President Mbeki and Finance Minister Manuel) is critical to solving the many problems we face. South Africa urgently needs to expose the perpetrators, and move on to the critically-important economic matters.
A corruption amnesty perhaps has a parallel in the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which recognised the need to heal and put the past behind us so we could progress with the very challenging task of building a democratic South Africa. A wholesale amnesty must come with conditions: 1. Ill-gotten gains must be paid back; 2. Salaries earned whilst engaging in corrupt activities must be paid back; 3. Those who do not admit to corruption, but are suspected of engaging in such activity, will be investigated and face the full weight of the law; 4. Ditto those who admit to corruption, but are suspected of not paying back all the ill-gotten money.The cancer of corruption must be excised now.
A final word: corruption has largely been exposed by journalists; South Africa's fine investigative journalists deserve high accolades. Without them we would be in far more serious socio-economic trouble.
South Africans anxiously await the day when iniquitous corruption is a problem past, and journalists turn their attention to matters economic. The entrepreneurial South Africans we all know do not wish to leave our beautiful country, but are increasingly doing so now because they are in fearful for their and their children's economic futures.
Professor Emeritus, Rhodes University
