LETTER: May venue inspire president

It is not without significance that the last public occasion at the Cape Town City Hall featuring Cyril Ramaphosa was 32 years ago, when he held the microphone for then freshly released ANC leader Nelson Mandela, who addressed the nation to good effect.

On February 10 Ramaphosa returns to the city hall to deliver, hopefully to similar effect, the state of the nation of “20-Tutu”. Coming as it does in the wake of the first two tranches of the Zondo state capture report, and the Special Investigating Unit report on “covidpreneurism”, the address should reflect the political will of the government to counter corruption with the necessary vigour, accountability and respect for the rule of law.

The president has not responded to the state capture commission reports, and says he won’t until June. His government admits to having no plan for the personal protective equipment procurement corruption. The truth is that corruption has been rife in SA for too long. The state of the nation should tackle corruption by including a response to:

• The resolution of the ANC national executive committee announced in August 2020 in which the cabinet was urgently instructed to establish a new, permanent, specialised and independent anticorruption entity;
• The draft legislation and constitutional amendment proffered by Accountability Now in August 2021, which put flesh on the bones of the ANC resolution in a way that seeks to be constitutionally compliant by recognising the binding nature of the majority judgment in the 2011 Glenister case; and 
• The efforts of the DA since July 2021 to prepare a private members bill that addresses the shortcomings of the Hawks, which is supposed to investigate serious corruption but never has.

The president ignores these developments at the peril of the nation and to the detriment of his electability. His sworn fealty to responsiveness will be on the line.

Paul Hoffman, SC
Director, Accountability Now

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