Cape Town – Public Enterprises minister, Pravin Gordhan, announced on Wednesday that it would take more than six months to regulate state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in order to recover from corruption.
It was reported that six SOEs made a loss of R1.6 billion. Gordhan said that the economy is highly impacted by the inefficient allocation of resources in these enterprises. He added that enterprises borrowing money to pay their debts will cause long-term negative effects.
Boards at SOEs were instructed to shift their focus to redress pertinent issues such as corruption. Boards will be responsible for ensuring that revenue is increased in order to be sure that the SOEs can pay their operational expenses and creditors. SOEs must be able to adapt as their industry expands and still be financially sustainable.
Gordhan says that the reform process must ensure that South Africans are the winners.
Parliament was encouraged to make public which firms had been conspiring together during state capture in order for them to be held accountable for paying the money owed back. Gordhan is adamant that there are enough legal practices in place to ensure that corruption can be detected early on.
The department will launch an independent whistleblower hotline where information about the entities can be reported. Gordhan trusts that many still act out in the national interests and is certain they will come forward with information they have.
In his address to the portfolio committee, Gordhan emphasized the negative impact of corruption on the country stating that it restricts how much progress can be made in other areas. Gordhan wants to ensure funds can be allocated to meeting the basic needs of South Africa.
