EDITOR – State capture is a term being abused by politicians and everything and everybody is being captured for some or other reason which led me to consider opening with the generally accepted definition.
It’s always preferable to preamble any text to the generally accepted politically contextualised definition, which reads as follows: “State capture is a type of systemic political corruption in which private interests significantly influence a state’s decision-making processes to their own advantage through unobvious channels, that may not be legal.”
In a recent Prime Time ANN7 debate, anchor, Sindy Mabe had a host of political analysts and others on the panel and my concern is more with the “other” panellists. These “other” panellists were representing formations that sprung up over-night and these are the De-colonisation Foundation and the Black Land First Party (BLF). The first is headed by Mzwanele Manyi, who was the former National Spokesperson of the ANC and the latter is headed by Andile Mngxitama, who founded the BLF party in 2015 following his expulsion from the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF).
Andile Mngxitama has accused whites of being behind campaigns to remove President Zuma. Both Manyi and Mngxitama have been accused by Sipho Pityana, Anglo American Ashanti chairman, of only being interested in advancing the Gupta family interests while Floyd Shivambu, Deputy President of the EFF has called the ANC top man (Manyi) an agent of the Gupta family. In addition to the abovementioned, Advocate Zehir Omar regularly appears on the panel as a constitutional law expert and one has to wonder how impartial he is, given his comments, which seem very biased in favour of the Guptas and the President.
It would be remiss of me if I fail to mention the spokesperson of the ANCYL, who continues to amaze me with his arguments and his postulations which are mind boggling given the skewed logic and given his propensity to speak against anyone who appears to be challenging the ANC’s position. But as the adage goes, “he who pays the piper, calls the tune” and it seems clear that these individuals are hand-picked by ANN7 to present a very one-sided view.
These are the really “captured” ones.
We are all aware that the Guptas own the New Age and ANN7 and given the above one can rationalise why two relatively unknown individuals (Manyi and Mngxitama) as well as Omar have been afforded such a powerful platform on Prime Time ANN7 and now one can dilute all that has been ventilated by these individuals against state capture and Minister Gordhan and the former Public Protector Thuli Madonsela.
Without knowing where these individuals come from one could easily be fooled into believing that they are being honest and fair in their presentations. This also casts a very dark shadow on all of ANN7 newscasts and bulletins given that they have selectively provided platforms for people who have an agenda that is not in harmony with their projected mission and contra to the interests of the voiceless people of South Africa for whom they profess to speak on behalf of.
A special sitting of the High Court presided over by the Judge President and assisted by the deputy Judge President and a very senior sitting judge ruled last week that the former Public Protectors 355 page Report on State Capture be released. Most pertinently, given that Advocate Thuli Madonsela could not interrogate all issues sufficiently due to the limited resources and the time available, the report recommended that a Judicial Commission of Inquiry be established within 30 days hereof and be headed by a senior Judge appointed by the Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court, to take the matter to its logical conclusion.
The rest is really history and history would be the judge and I choose to end with an African proverb – “when two elephants fight its the grass that gets destroyed”.
Sicario
Durban
