ABSTRACT\ud
This thesis evaluates the effectiveness of public sector anti-corruption reform efforts\ud
in democratic South Africa. These reforms are contextualized within the international\ud
theory, literature and policy debate that has emerged over the past decade on the\ud
control of corruption within the context of democratic governance.\ud
To evaluate the effectiveness of anti-corruption reforms the thesis first covers a\ud
number of broad themes including: conceptions, causes and consequences of\ud
corruption; main theoretical approaches underpinning anti-corruption reforms; and\ud
methodologies to evaluate the effectiveness and seriousness of anti-corruption efforts.\ud
Specifically focusing on South Africa, the thesis looks at the nature and extent of\ud
corruption both pre and post 1994; recent legislative, institutional, and policy\ud
interventions to control public sector corruption; and, as an illustrative case study of\ud
grand corruption, an in-depth analysis of the government’s handling of allegations of\ud
corruption in the Strategic Defense Procurement Package or “arms deal.”\ud
The findings of the thesis are mixed: I argue that democracy is a necessary albeit\ud
insufficient condition for effectively fighting corruption. Although South Africa has\ud
an impressive array of institutions, laws and policies to counter public sector\ud
corruption, the most important ingredient for successful reforms, namely an indication\ud
of sustained political will, is not yet fully in evidence. The government’s mishandling\ud
of allegations of corruption in the arms deal is a case in point, suggesting chronic\ud
weaknesses on the part of institutions such as parliament to safeguard the public\ud
interest. Lack of regulation in the funding of political parties remains the “Achilles\ud
heel” of anti-corruption reform efforts. So far as concerns further theoretical framing\ud
of corruption studies I conclude that a focus on social empowerment (Johnston) in the\ud
context of democratic consolidation, including an active civil society and vigilant\ud
media, is crucial for the effective fight against corruption in new democracies such as\ud
South Africa