Anti-corruption broom sweeping into Masters of High Court offices accused of predatory behaviour

A Deputy Master at the High court in Mbombela, Bina Masuku who was arrested in November last year for allegedly siphoning off R1.7m from people seeking help with deceased estates, appears to be the tip of the iceberg of problems at Master’s offices who deal with estates, the Guardian’s Fund, trusts and insolvency. In another instance, 45 000 files at the Master in Pretoria is said to have gone missing. There are also several complaints against the Acting Chief Master Theresia Bezuidenhout who is accused of interfering in disciplinary cases against Deputy-Masters and of irregular expenses. At the end of last month, President Cyril Ramaphosa gave the Special Investigation Unit a year to investigate the allegations which lead to the countrywide closure of all Master’s offices for two days last week during which the SIU raided and seized desktops and laptops it had identified as necessary for the investigations. Justice and Correctional Services Minister Ronald Lamola said he wanted to close all the loopholes that currently existed and restore offices that work for minors, orphans and widows. The investigation has been welcomed by insolvency practitioners. René Bekker, the Chief Operating Officer at the South African Restructuring and Insolvency Practitioners Association (SARIPA) told Alec Hogg that working with the master’s offices around the country was a challenge. - Linda van Tilburg