Should churches be part of South Africa’s anti-corruption shield?
By Zuko Komisa

South Africa’s churches have long been pillars of trust and sanctuaries of hope, carrying a powerful legacy from providing refuge during apartheid to offering moral guidance today.
But a new call to action is pushing their mandate into unexpected territory.
Public Protector Kholeka Gcaleka has urged faith based organisations to step up as a fresh line of defence against illicit financial flows.
In a recent address, Advocate Gcaleka urged:
“We really need the assistance of the church to identify illicit financial flows. It is money that is untraceable, and we do know that some of that money people bring it to the church. So, that is the stance that the church needs to take.”
This raises a sticky question for religious leaders and congregants alike. Should local places of worship effectively act as financial investigators, and how on earth would that work in practice? If a generous donor hands over a massive contribution, is it up to the church to ask where it came from especially when querying the funds might mean challenging a prominent, wealthy member of the community?
To help make sense of it all, Drive 959 was recently joined by Lebogang Ramafoko, Executive Director of Corruption Watch. Ramafoko explianed how dirty money slips into trusted institutions:
“First and foremost churches operate in a country that has laws, and some of those laws are financial regulations, churches are exempt from paying tax because of their registration, but they are one area of illicit financial flows. By illicit financial flows we mean money that was obtain in dubious manners, or money that has been covered up and the church becomes an easy place to hide drug money, war money and gang related money and stolen money.”
She also explored whether religious bodies are even equipped to handle this kind of oversight, or if the primary burden of tackling financial crime must remain squarely on law enforcement and state regulators.
Listen to the full conversation here
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