The University of the Free State (UFS) calls on students to use the power of the pen to uproot the rampant crime of corruption in South Africa.
Together with non-governmental partners Accountability Now, Corruption Watch, Council for the Advancement of the South African Constitution (Casac) and Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa), the university has launched the Student Essay Writing Competition to generate ideas aimed at tackling corruption.
Themed “Combating Corruption in South Africa”, the competition was launched on Monday, 4 April.
All registered postgraduate and final-year undergraduate students are challenged to fight corruption through the writing competition.
Entrants are required to tackle a range of issues, such as the reasons for corruption in South Africa, the need for the establishment of a Chapter Nine Integrity Commission, and the ways in which universities – especially the UFS – can respond effectively to corruption.
According to Prof. Francis Petersen, rector and vice-chancellor of the UFS, the negative impact of corruption prompted the initiative.
“Corruption erodes the social fabric of our society, and it inhibits South Africa’s developmental agenda,” he said.
“We are all aware of the widespread corruption in our country, both in government and other sectors of the economy.”
According to Lawson Naidoo, executive secretary of Casac, corruption has undermined democracy and the constitutional foundations.
“It has eroded state institutions and the body politics in the country. The hardest hit are the poor and vulnerable.”
Adv. Stefanie fick, head of legal affairs at Outa, believes the effects of corruption need to be highlighted.
“Our high unemployment rate points back to corruption.”
Adv. Paul Hoffman, director and head of projects at Accountability Now, congratulated the UFS on a worthy initiative.
“We still do not have effective and efficient anti-corruption state machinery in South Africa, as can be seen by the state capture and the Covid-19 pandemic.”
