Article Written by Ian Kilbride. Has the King Code failed us, or we it? Released in 2016, King lV set a new standard in documenting corporate governance and remains both admired and referenced globally. The introduction to King lV proudly proclaims that, “Since the publication of the first King report, South Africa has maintained a proud tradition of corporate governance.” Really? To the contrary, the Nupen and Zondo Commissions reveal in painful detail just how tattered corporate governance has become in our country. Lamenting a loss of moral compass, as far back as 2005, Judge Hilary Squires noted, “This phenomenon of corruption can truly be likened to a cancer eating away remorselessly at the fabric of corporate privity … If not checked, it becomes systemic … One can hopefully discount the prospect of this happening in this country …” Judge Squires’ fears have sadly been realised and we are now reaping the harvest of corroded corporate governance, combined with hollowed out national institutions. Like a nation of boiled frogs, for a decade we sleepwalked into this set of circumstances in which trust in our institutions plummeted to an all-time low. Only since the election of President Ramaphosa are we beginning […]
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