Glencore denies SA involvement in corruption charges
In the wake of Glencore’s guilty plea, to allegations of bribery and market manipulation in the US, UK, and Brazil the company has agreed to pay over R23-billion. The multi-national cooperation was fined $1.2 billion for bribery and violation of that country’s Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.
According to a Fin24 article, Units of the Swiss commodities giant entered guilty pleas and agreed to pay about $1.5 billion to settle US, UK, and Brazilian bribery and market manipulation probes that have hung over it for years. The bribery scheme reached the most senior ranks of the company, according to a court filing.
But while US Attorney General Merrick Garland has prioritized holding individuals responsible for corporate fraud, no executives were charged in the announcement settlements. Naturally, the company didn’t account for the payments as bribes. Instead, employees at the Glencore UK units “used coded language to conceal their discussion of bribe payments” referring to them as “newspapers” or “journals” or “pages”, according to a court filing.
Glencore stakeholders in SA concerned
Much of the brazen bribery took place in Africa, where the level of oversight is often poor, and politicians in the worst countries demand that palms be greased. The United Democratic Movement (UDM) leader Bantu Holomisa has written to Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane to consider approaching the United States government for evidence against mining giant Glencore.
In a recent television interview, Political Economist Professor Patrick Bond said “If the guilty plea implicates former Glencore CEO Ivan Glasenburg, SA must be looked at. It would be tragic if the United States does the prosecution and keeps the money. There will be a little money going to the UK and Brazil, but what about the African people who have been looted through the bribery operations that were unveiled in this investigation?”
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In its defence, Glencore has released a statement denying its South African business involvement. “None of the investigations are related to our business in South Africa or our coal, ferroalloys or Astron businesses. We acknowledge the misconduct identified in these investigations and have clearly stated that this type of behaviour has no place in the Glencore of today. We are committed going forward to operating transparently under a well-defined set of values, with openness and integrity at the forefront.” the statement read.
Source: Mining Review
