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Daily Maverick
a day ago
- Politics
- Daily Maverick
Same same — how State Capture has become SA's greatest export
As Trump wipes away American history and redoubles down on thought crimes, he'd be horrified to know that the ANC has done it better, which is to say worse. Of all the ANC's masterstrokes — and believe it or not, there have been a few — the capture (and subsequent erasure) of history is perhaps its most successful. Without a past, there is no future — just an eternal now, a limbo that represents political stasis. And as dynamic as South Africa may seem if you have your nose jammed in the news, this is indeed a country of stasis, a country where new ideas and genuine transformation die before they are born. Because the ANC has captured history — it is, after all, the 'liberation party', and that's all there is to know — there is no point in revising history, because it's meant to be forgotten. Take the Zondo Commission. Remember that billion-rand boondoggle? Four volumes stuffed with the nightmare legacy of Zuma era corruption, and the results? Not much. The complaints are simple: all of that taxpayer money blown, and not a single meaningful prosecution. But that is to miss the point. As the political commentator and playwright Richard Calland has noted, 'State Capture was something that was really significant. And yet there was a real danger that we moved on too fast from it, and the lessons were not learned, were not digested. And then all the work that was done to defend democracy was kind of wasted. And it was a huge effort to protect the institutions and the rule of law. And I think, although full accountability hasn't happened yet, that it was a significant effort to defend public democracy from private State Capture.' And yet, the Zondo Commission Report should be required reading — the first thing placed in the hands of a kid hitting Grade Zero, in picture-book form. This, after all, is the story of how the world is hijacked. It's an epic, a fairytale, a parable. It's also universally applicable, at least as far as democracies are concerned. The Zondo Commission tells a linear story: how a state is captured, and corruption formalised, by a norm-breaking executive and its private sector enablers. President Jacob Zuma, who was manifestly and obviously a thief, became a viable candidate to replace the establishment figure Thabo Mbeki because he wasn't Thabo Mbeki. His shortcomings were overlooked because it was time for change. The change he offered — a populist spin on African nationalism — was the only thing that would keep the ANC, and therefore the country, from imploding. Or so we were told. In educational and intellectual terms, Zuma was not a Harvard University business school graduate. But he was at least as unethical and rapacious as one. A spy by (forced) vocation, he employed his louche paranoia as a tool against his enemies. He effortlessly subverted the State Security Agency, using it as a money funnel and a battering ram to enrich his cronies and undermine his enemies. His benefactors were brought into the fold to act as middlemen in the flow of funds from the state to state-owned enterprises and their private sector contractees. Then, Zuma went for the National Prosecuting Authority, and followed that up with attacks on other law enforcement agencies — a very simple procedure, given that the executive has the final say over who runs these institutions. He made foolish choices to head the Public Protector's office and the Constitutional Court, but they were his choices to make. By doing this, he signalled that it was open season for corruption, and that shame no longer had a role to play in moderating political behaviour in South Africa. There are other forebears of the 21st-century style of kleptocratic state vandalism. They include Benjamin Netanyahu in Israel, Viktor Orbán in Hungary and, of course, the OG, Vladimir Putin in Russia. But no other country has 4,000 pages of testimony breaking down exactly how the system works. In this, the Zondo Commission Report is perhaps the most important piece of political literature written in the past 25 years. And outside of Ferial Haffajee, how many South Africans, let alone foreign political observers or analysts, have read the whole thing? From a certain perspective, Zondo is a blueprint for how an empowered and unembarrassable executive performs a coup on his or her own country. There are clues in Zondo for how the 21st century has gone so horribly wrong, and hints at how to fix it. *** If liberal Americans knew what they were doing — and they don't — they'd see South Africa as a bellwether, as a warning. This isn't a Zuma equals Trump comparative thing — this goes far beyond individual personalities. Instead, they'd understand how corruption becomes entrenched — how it underpins, and then entirely supplants, ideology. As in South Africa, in the United States, special interests long ago hijacked anything resembling a functioning democracy. Here, the Guptas were avatars for private parasites latching on to the state and leeching it dry. In the US, corruption was driven through the Supreme Court, which has proved almost gleefully amenable. The biggest moment was the Citizens United ruling in 2008, which effectively allowed unlimited corporate spending in election campaigns. From there, it's been relatively smooth sailing. In recent years, while much of the focus was on the repeal of Roe v Wade and the end of female bodily autonomy, Trump's Supreme Court has done two things. First, it's allowed the executive almost monarchical power. And second, it's made bribery — or, rather, 'gratuities' — legal. You don't have to be a genius to see how this leads to a culture of extreme corruption, and it has. The end of Joe Biden's disastrous term led to a slew of pre-pardons of family members, which slithered into Trump 2 and the Zuma-like strip-down of the state. Congress, ostensibly a lawmaking body, stares on gape-mouthed as Trump rewrites the American order in the Oval Office. The lower courts have held up what might be considered the rule of law, but at this point it's largely vestigial. Trump is so empowered that he's now very literally rewarding corruption. Take the case of Paul Walczak, a medical executive and tax cheat who made an application for a full pardon, which Trump ignored. Until Walczak's mother showed up at a million-dollar-a-plate fundraising dinner, where she hobnobbed with the Republican glitterati and scored her son a get-out-of-jail-free card. It's pay to play, and there's no longer anything ambiguous about it. *** Zuma's genius, as with Trump and his minions, is to make graft ideological. The infamous Bell Pottinger misinformation campaign, which reintroduced White Monopoly Capital into the South African parlance, situated corruption and anti-constitutionalism as a transformation project — as a means to empower the previously unempowered. In essence, this was a 'screw the elite' project, which conveniently ignored the facts of power distribution in South Africa, while exploiting the very real economic disparities. Likewise, the Trump ideology comes down to little more than Fuck The Libs. This is a deplorable uprising, the upending of snooty Harvard/Yale/Columbia shitlibs (which again ignores the specifics of who is currently in power in the US). This is emotion as ideology, a vacuous project of rage-baiting driven by the neo-Bell Pottingers on the likes of Elon Musk's X. 'So loud and quiet at once, ideology becomes a substitute for mood,' wrote the novelist Joshua Cohen. And the mood in the US is dark and rebarbative. The capture of the state by special interests — by the billionaire class and the corporations who will exclusively benefit from the revolution under way — is misinterpreted as fascism. But this is silly. The performance of authoritarianism is secondary to the flood-the-zone-with-sewage approach to governance, which hides the formalisation of corruption. No one bothered to call Zuma a fascist — it simply didn't matter. He worked for his family and his friends and benefactors, and no one else. It was a simpler time. It should hopefully be obvious that rebuilding a functioning state in the wake of State Capture is nearly impossible. The centralisation of corruption under Big Men like Zuma (and Trump) inevitably gives way to a violent contestation when they leave office. This fragmentation is lethal and destabilising, and it breeds nostalgia for the good old days of the God King. Which is where South Africa finds itself now. As Trump wipes away American history and redoubles down on thought crimes, he'd be horrified to know that the ANC has done it better, which is to say worse. The rest of the world should take note: it's not fun digging out from under ideology-as-mood. Very little is left to build with. But it always pays to remember that State Capture is an elite project, prosecuted from the top, that benefits the wealthy and powerful. The rest of us are just suckers and cannon fodder. DM
IOL News
4 days ago
- Politics
- IOL News
What challenges do whistle-blowers face in South Africa's battle against corruption?
South Africa, led by President Cyril Ramaphosa, has amended various laws to combat corruption, however, whistle-blowers are exposed to risk, with some in hiding. Image: Supplied While South Africa has implemented various anti-corruption laws, including a National Anti-Corruption Strategy, concerns have been raised about the ineffective whistle-blower mechanisms and the whistle-blowing framework, which limits the reporting of wrongdoing. Among key anti-corruption laws that have been amended are the Prevention of Combating of Corrupt Activities Act, the Anti-Money Laundering Legislation General Laws, and the National Prosecution Authority Amendment Act, which stemmed from the Zondo Commission Report. Mary de Haas, a KwaZulu-Natal violence monitor, said whistle-blowers' lives are at risk, and it seems that politicians are untouchable, as corruption continues and often leads back to politicians. She mentioned at least two whistle-blowers whose lives are at risk after they exposed corruption. People in government, from the president down, are promising help for whistle-blowers, but there is nothing, she said. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad loading 'Patricia Mashale was a very senior admin person within the police, and she reported corruption to the then National police commissioner General Khehla Sitole about Free State management corruption. He (Sitole) sent it back to them, and her life became endangered. 'Mashale can't live with her children because her house is under surveillance, and there is no financial support for whistle-blowers. How could people live when they have lost a job, have been illegally dismissed, and they can't live in their own homes because they are under surveillance and may get killed?' De Haas asked. She said, Warrant Officer Meshack Makhubo, who opened the second docket in the Senzo Meyiwa case, is also in danger. 'There was an attack on his home. It wasn't just a break-in attack. It was an onslaught on his home. They want him dead because he knows too much about corruption in the police and the cover-up in the Meyiwa case.. 'I have been informed that a lot of people now just keep quiet even when they know about corruption. They just go with it because when you open your mouth or you show that you are reporting it, your job is the first thing on the line. A lot of the dismissals are swift, and the Labour Court has confirmed they are illegal,' De Haas said. She added that the other thing they do is bring a Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation (SLAPP) suit, which is filed to silence or intimidate someone who has spoken out about a matter of public interest. 'I've got one against me, which is nonsense. I mean, there is no substance in it at all, but they try to shut you up by threatening to sue you if you report them. That's how bad it is,' she said. Devoshum Moodley-Veera, an integrity activist, PhD student at the School of Public Leadership and ACCERUS at Stellenbosch University, said there has been a lot of talk around the amendment of the Protected Disclosures Act for years, but it is yet to be seen whether law alone can assist in whistle-blower protection. 'Whistle-blowing is multi-faceted with several role players involved, yet we see a blame culture on whose role is it to protect whistle-blowers. With the laws not providing a dedicated institution to deal with whistle-blowing complaints, I am afraid that retaliation will increase under the current whistle-blowing framework, as we have seen severe cases such as Babita Deokaran and Pamela Kabini,' Moodley-Veera said. She added that the Feinstein and Devine report of 2021 examined the sufficiency of the primary whistle-blower laws by juxtaposing 17 countries with the standards established by the European Union Whistleblowing Directive (2019/1937). South Africa met only five of the 20 criteria to be included in whistle-blowing laws, which makes whistle-blowing legislation ineffective in South Africa. Moodley-Veera said the country can be commended for a number of anti-corruption initiatives, however, the implementation remains weak. 'The Transparency International Corruption Perception Index is used to measure anti-corruption effectiveness. Thus far, South Africa has scored 41, the same as the previous year, showing no progress. The score is below the global average of 43, having dropped by three points since 2019. It should be noted that this index shows perceived levels of corruption in the public sector, not the number of cases reported or experiences of the public,' Moodley-Veera said. She highlighted that there is a trust deficit in the country, and citizens would like to see action and accountability, which are severely lacking. 'Action should be taken. Institutions should appoint competent, ethical leadership to implement these initiatives. Legislation should be reformed, and laws should be developed to address the current context and situation in the country. The use of Western laws does not help the country in its current state,' she said. During the State of the Nation Address, President Cyril Ramaphosa said the government had started taking steps to expose and punish corrupt activities in the public and private sectors, to reform institutions, making them stronger, more transparent, and restoring a professional and effective public service. He said the NPA Investigating Directorate had at that time enrolled over 34 corruption cases, charged 202 accused individuals, and 65 accused entities. 'We are making progress in the fight against corruption with over 1,300 corruption convictions in four years, including 500 government officials. R14.18 billion assets frozen in corruption and state capture cases. Thirty-four cases were enrolled, involving over 200 accused persons, including former ministers and some of the largest corporate companies in the country, such as McKinsey and ABB. 'The NPA has finalised a comprehensive settlement agreement with company ABB to pay over a further R2.5bn in 'punitive reparations to South Africa' for its part in state capture. This adds to the R6 billion ABB already paid to Eskom in 2020,' Ramaphosa said. Moodley-Veera explained that the challenges experienced with asset recovery by the Asset Forfeiture Unit and Investigating Directorate, both positioned within the National Prosecuting Authority, are the slow disposal rates of cases, which lead to high management costs and high recovery costs, resulting in loss of value. The high costs of appointing curators to manage the frozen assets as part of property management. There is also a lack of technical and forensic skills within these institutions for asset recovery. This lack of technical skills results in unsuccessful confiscation proceedings. There is also a lack of capacity, inadequate budgets, poor collaboration, political interference in the criminal justice system and the law enforcement agencies, Moodley-Veera explained. She added that one of the biggest successes of anti-corruption efforts in South Africa was that the late Dudu Myeni (former South African Airways chairperson) was found to be a delinquent director by the courts under the Companies Act. This was after the state capture proceedings. 'Another success is that due to transparency, the State Capture commission proceedings were broadcast in the media, and also the report was shared with the public. There has also been more public awareness around whistle-blowing, and some of the biggest cases of retaliation were made public. This shows that whistle-blowing is indeed one of the tools to be used for anti-corruption measures. As a country, we have also seen the vital role played by media and civil society organisations in addressing corruption in South Africa. 'However, there are persistent challenges such as ineffective whistle-blowing laws, cases that are delayed, high costs of litigation, and regulators and state institutions lacking independence to deal with corruption cases. There is also a lack of resources to deal with cases,' she said. 'Civil society organisations have come together to develop and launch the Zondo Tracker to also oversee the implementation of the Zondo recommendations,' Moodley-Veera said. She added that anti-corruption initiatives should not be seen as a responsibility of the state only, but should be a collaborative effort to achieve a society that is free from fraud and corruption.
