| (1) |
The National Director may request any person employed in or associated with a Government Department or statutory body to furnish him or her with all information that may reasonably be required for any investigation in terms of this Act and such person shall notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in any law which prohibits or precludes him or her— |
| (a) |
from disclosing any information relating to the activities, affairs or business of any other person; or |
| (b) |
from permitting any person to have access to any registers, records or other documents, or electronic data which have a bearing on the said activities, affairs or business, |
furnish the National Director with such information and permit the National Director to have access to any registers, records, documents, and electronic data, which may contain such information.
| (2) |
The provisions of subsection (1) shall not be construed as prohibiting any Minister by whom or any other departmental or institutional authority by which, or under the control of whom or which, any law referred to in that subsection is administered, or any board, institution or body established by or under any such law, from making any practical and reasonable procedural arrangements with regard to the furnishing of such information or the granting of the access contemplated in that subsection and according to which the information or access shall be furnished or granted or with regard to any reasonable safeguards which any such Minister, authority, board, institution, body or person, subject to the provisions of subsection (3), requires to maintain the confidentiality of such information, registers, records, documents or electronic data. |
| (a) |
No person shall without the written permission of the National Director disclose to any other person any confidential information, registers, records, documents or electronic data which came to his or her knowledge in the performance of his or her functions in terms of this Act and relating to the activities, affairs or business of any other person, except— |
| (i) |
for the purpose of performing his or her functions in terms of this Act; |
| (ii) |
in the course of adducing evidence in any criminal proceedings or proceedings in terms of this Act; or |
| (iii) |
when required to do so by an order of a court of law. |
| (b) |
Any person who contravenes paragraph (a) shall be guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to a fine or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding 20 years. |
Maintenance Act, 1998
