The Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference (SACBC) has appealed to President Cyril Ramphosa to abandon the “politics of expediency and appeasement” and take steps to restore the public’s trust in The Presidency.

This follows the recent corruption scandal involving the alleged looting of public resources and funds meant to tackle the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic in the country.

SACBC is an episcopal conference consisting of all the bishops of the Roman Catholic Church in South Africa, Botswana, and Swaziland.

In a statement, the SACBC said it was appalled at allegations of looting of public resources during the pandemic but said it was not surprised.

“We urge our leaders to take careful note of the way in which they have allowed a culture of impunity around corruption to develop and provide an enabling environment for the current Covid-19 corruption. In the previous years, despite serious allegations, there have been no arrests, prosecution and accountability for politicians and their families,” the SACBC said.

The organisation also expressed concern that anticorruption institutions continue to be compromised and are made less effective by patronage politics and “blind allegiance” to political factions.

It noted that the recent corruption scandal has had a negative impact on public confidence in The Presidency and its ability to deal with corruption.

“During this difficult time in our nation when the lives and livelihoods of millions of people are at stake, the country cannot afford high levels of trust deficit in the government and the Office of the President. We wish to remind the President that the time for inter-Ministerial committees, commissions of enquiries and political compromises is now over,” the SACBC said.

It has demanded the immediate suspension, investigation, arrests and prosecution of those involved in corruption.

The organisation further calls for the President and his Cabinet to expedite the re-establishment of a specialised anticorruption unit with guaranteed levels of independence and budget allocations.

The SACBC also suggested that specialised courts handle corruption cases and receive serious consideration to ensure higher conviction rates and to expedite corruption cases.

It has also called for the current tender system to be reviewed in favour of greater transparency and accountability.