There is a great recognition by Public Administration academics, practitioners and civil society alike that corruption in the public sector has an adverse impact on service delivery. This emanates from the understanding that corruption does not only undermine the development goals of the country, but also that it hits the poor the most as resources that are meant to assist them out of their nervous conditions are diverted to the benefits of the few corrupt elites. Under these circumstances, structural inequalities, which have come to define and characterise the society in post-apartheid South Africa, are reinforced. This is evident in the fact that the rich continues to get richer as the poor get even poorer. This is a condition which is not conducive for social and political stability as well as sustainable development. It is largely because of this consideration that effective anticorruption work is critical for promoting good governance in a developmental state such as what South Africa aspires to be. The article argues that although the South African public sector has a sound legislative framework and strategies for combating corruption, challenges such as the weaker application of the legislation and oversight mechanisms; insufficient political will; political deployments, and an absence of meritocratic systems provide opportunities for unethical, fraudulent and/or corrupt activities to thrive. To this end, the article presents an overview of the phenomenon of corruption in the South African public sector with the view of identifying the causes of corruption; the challenges of combating corruption as well as the implications these challenges pose for service delivery. The article concludes by making some recommendations on how to resolve the scourge of corruption.

673, the organisation name 'Ehlanzeni District Municipality' was incorrectly abbreviated as EDMEDM in some instances throughout the article. The correct abbreviation should be EDM. This correction does not alter the study's findings of significance or overall interpretation of the study's results. The authors apologise for any inconvenience caused.

Background: District municipalities are faced with numerous challenges that hinder their ability to execute the legal mandate of assisting local municipalities to deliver services to their communities.Aim: This article explored two critical issues: political challenges faced by districts in the recruitment of personnel in key positions and the financial status of districts in relation to their role in local government.Setting: The study is based in the Ehlanzeni District Municipality, Mpumalanga Province. The study also included local municipalities within Ehlanzeni District (City of Mbombela, Nkomazi and Bushbuckridge local municipalities); South African Local Government Association; and the Mpumalanga Department of Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs.Methods: The study adopted a qualitative research method, and data were collected through semi-structured interviews.Results: Literature and the study findings revealed that cadre deployment in key positions has contributed to the shortage of skilled personnel in municipalities. The findings also showed that Ehlanzeni District Municipality is not adequately financed to be able to execute its legal mandate.Conclusion: The study recommended that cadre deployment in key municipal positions should be aligned with legislated recruitment policies. Moreover, communities need to start paying for services that they receive so that municipalities may have more revenue to maintain infrastructure, to ensure continued service delivery.

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