A bad week for Busisiwe Mkhwebane

A good week for Nigel Farage

Nigel Farage is not widely liked, but there is admiration — sneaking or otherwise — for Britain’s Brexiteer-in-chief standing up to posh UK bank Coutts after it leaked information about him. It struck a nerve with average bank customers who often experience indifference at the counter and watch how mortgage rates rise faster than returns on most deposit accounts. In an increasingly cashless society, banks provide a service that is as essential as water and power; their high-handed attitude — or indiscretion in the case of Farage — will only undermine their reputation.

A bad week for Busisiwe Mkhwebane

Three strikes and you’re out is the rule. Except for suspended public protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane when two were enough to impeach her, according to a finding this week by a parliamentary committee. Holders of a Chapter 9 office such as hers can be impeached for misconduct, incompetence or incapacity. Mkhwebane ticked the first two, said the committee investigating her conduct. It has taken a year but it’s a relief the saga is reaching closure. Mkhwebane’s defence has often been embarrassing. In the end she resorted to the desperation of bizarre WhatsApp messages. None of it was convincing.