ANA reports that the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) Amendment Bill was passed in the National Assembly by majority vote on Tuesday.  

The bill aims to strengthen accountability and transparency in the PIC, which has been beset by allegations of dodgy investments and which is currently at the centre of an commission of inquiry.  The Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF) is the biggest depositor in the PIC, which is Africa's biggest asset manager and controls more than R2 trillion.  With reference to unions being represented on the PIC board, ANC MP Thandi Thobias, a member of Parliament's standing committee on finance, said:  "Our bill gives the workers of South Africa a voice on how their money must be invested."  In addition, the PIC will need to ask for consent before investing large amounts of money in projects, which will need to be disclosed in Parliament.  The bill was passed following a vote with 194 MPs in favour, seven against, and one abstention.

• Read the full original of the report on this matter at Independent News

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