HE is the most powerful man in the country, president of country and party. Like all government officials he has placed his hand on his heart and sworn allegiance to the country to uphold the Constitution and the laws of the country. And if he fails in his duty he is accountable to Parliament and the people.
But he’s also human and bound to make errors of judgement in policy and execution of his duties. That is why we have a Parliament to question the president and his executive and rein them whenever they wander off the path. The true test of a democracy is the extent to which the president and his executive are answerable to Parliament and the people.
To strengthen the arm of Parliament further it has a special oversight committee, the so-called engine room of Parliament, formed specifically to keep an eye on the executive and haul any deviant member of the Cabinet over the coals.
But if you are in the majority party then you are in safe hands. We saw this happen on several occasions with former president Jacob Zuma. Whenever he fell foul of the law, ANC MPs formed a protective shield around him. Emboldened by such show of dog-like allegiance, it spurred him on to greater heights of malfeasance.
Now President Cyril Ramaphosa, who presented a clean face to the public, is no better than Zuma. His administration is as riddled with corruption. Not one corrupt government official has been sent to prison.
The reason is clear … he is not serious about corruption. He only pays lip service in the fight against corruption. And then he exposed himself very badly when he was heard in a leaked audio clip saying he would rather fall on his sword than reveal the names of the ANC officials who have been misusing public funds for party political purposes.
So the leader of a nation decides to keep quiet when theft of public funds is taking place under his watch. In law, he could be charged for being an accessory to a crime.
How could we have any faith in him and expect him to lead out us out of this crisis? To the public he says he is going to go after the corrupt but within closed doors he reassures his friends he would do no such treacherous thing.
He’s a two-faced man. It would be interesting to know what evidence he gave at the Zondo Commission.
T MARKANDAN | Kloof
Daily News