From Multi-Billion-Rand CFO to Unemployed: Whistleblower's Personal Cost of Fighting Corruption

• Sarika Lakraj-Naidoo flagged alleged irregularities in the City of Johannesburg's multi-billion-rand vehicle fleet in 2019
• The former CFO was fired after 15 years of municipal service and faced violent threats, including a shooting incident
• Despite holding a Master's degree, she struggled to find work and had to halt her PhD studies due to unpaid tuition

Sarika Lakraj-Naidoo was once a senior financial officer managing billions of rands on behalf of the City of Johannesburg. Today, she is unemployed, with no wedding ring on her finger and a PhD she can no longer afford to finish.

The former chief financial officer spoke out about the devastating toll she paid for reporting alleged corruption within the municipality's vehicle fleet, which included fire engines and police vehicles. She first raised concerns in 2019 while preparing a public safety report for the mayor, and later submitted detailed findings to the Hawks and Gauteng Forensic and Investigative Services.

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Fired after 15 years of service

Rather than being protected, Lakraj-Naidoo found herself on the receiving end of disciplinary action. After 15 years with the municipality, she shared in an interview with media reports that she was dismissed in June 2023 on charges of misconduct, bullying, and harassment. She challenged the dismissal through arbitration, where the presiding officer found the allegations to be without merit and awarded her 10 months' remuneration. She was not reinstated.

The retribution went far beyond the workplace. Lakraj-Naidoo recounted a shooting incident that forced her to abandon her car and flee. There were also attempts by unknown individuals to gain access to her home, and threats were made against her child's school.

Selling valuables to survive

With her career in freefall, Lakraj-Naidoo struggled to find work in either the public or private sector, despite holding a Master's degree. To keep her family afloat, she sold personal belongings, including her wedding rings. The financial strain eventually forced her to suspend her PhD studies after she could no longer cover her tuition fees.

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Representatives from the Active Citizens Movement drew attention to her case as a stark example of how South African law falls short in shielding whistleblowers from retaliation. They pointed to other state employees who had faced similar consequences after reporting institutional wrongdoing, arguing that the current legal framework offers inadequate protection to those who come forward.

See the interview below:

More on fraud, corruption and crime in SA

• Briefly News recently reported on four Mpumalanga women sentenced for defrauding SASSA over a 12-year period, and the surprising outcome of their sentence.
• Gogo Maweni's court cases were raised in Parliament, where an MP made serious claims about the police.
• A top police general admitted that some officers may know who ordered the DJ Warras and Witness D murders, and South Africans were not surprised.

Source: Briefly News