Jessie Duarte, you actually owe South Africa an apology

“I believe I owe you an apology,” says ANC deputy secretary-general Jessie Duarte to Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo after insinuating in an article that the evidence that was led at the Commission of Inquiry Into Allegations of State Capture was “an onslaught on the people” and that Zondo was allowing this onslaught because he works within the “narrow parameters of the existing laws”.

Duarte apologises to Justice Zondo because she says “I have a deep respect for the work that you do”.

The apology to Zondo is a half-hearted one, like it was done as an afterthought. Most importantly though, Duarte’s apology does not go anywhere near actually acknowledging what was wrong with her initial op-ed in the Daily Maverick.

Just so it is clear, Duarte took to a public platform and said esteemed struggle heroes like Albertina Sisulu and Nelson Mandela – alongside whom she says she had the privilege of working – helped shaped the democratic centralism that is the basis of decision-making in the ruling party today.

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“What would Nelson Mandela do?” is one of the questions she claims to use as her self-reflecting tool. A lot can be said about how she invokes the names of struggle royalty in defence of the rampant looting of state funds over the last decade, but South Africa’s biggest worry should be the fact that a top six official of the ruling party goes all out to defend a system of decision-making that takes away members’ of Parliament oath to the Constitution and replaces it with loyalty to their party, even in the face of blatant wrongdoing.

The lack of self-reflection in the apology points to a leader who actually believes that the mechanism that has guided the ANC’s decisions during the worst of state capture is actually the best mechanism.

And therein lies South Africa’s problem: a ruling party that values loyalty to the party more than the Constitution will continue to provide cover to corrupt leaders who can manipulate the decision-making processes of the party.

The moral compass of the party will always guide its decision-making and if shady characters have been allowed space to manipulate its structures, the party will protect those carrying out corrupt acts.

The most recent national executive committee (NEC) meeting of the ruling party actually had to spend time deliberating on whether party officials charged with crimes should step aside or not.

It is scary how far down the path of skewed morals the current leadership of the ruling party has allowed the organisation to go. Surely it makes moral sense to have leaders step aside and clear their names if they can, without being burdened with the expectations of carrying out the daily duties in the organisation?

That’s a no-brainer but with leaders like Duarte – who can publicly proclaim that a structure set up to probe corruption is an “onslaught on the people” – this becomes an actual debate.

ALSO READ: Duarte must think before she speaks

“I believe I owe you an apology” to Justice Zondo should actually be “South Africa, we owe you an apology”. The apology should be for all the times that her leadership and that of her colleagues actually prevented individuals within the ruling party from obeying their consciences and preventing the looting that got us here in the first place.

Duarte should apologise for invoking the names of Mandela and MaSisulu to defend the actions of looters whose values bear no resemblance to those struggle icons. When she and her party stop using the tyranny of numbers in Parliament to defend the looting of public funds. then her apology will mean something.

Sydney Majoko.

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