Taking a stand against corruption

The principles of openness, transparency and accountability are built into and guaranteed protection by South Africa's Constitution, President Jacob Zuma said at the launch of the Open Government Partnership – of which SA is one of eight founding governments – in New York last week.

The smooth running of last week's municipal elections once more demonstrated South Africa's growth as a democracy and how it continues to attract the respect of the international community, President Jacob Zuma said after a meeting with the board of the International Marketing Council of SA on Tuesday.

With a record voter turnout of 57.6%, the Independent Electoral Commission has declared South Africa's 2011 municipal elections free and fair. The African National Congress (ANC) led with 62% of the votes overall, followed by the Democratic Alliance (DA) with 23.9%.

President Jacob Zuma, speaking during the Freedom Day celebrations in Pretoria on Wednesday, reminded South Africans of how far their country had come since they first voted 17 years ago, while acknowledging that much work remained to be done to reverse the long legacy of apartheid.