By Alec Hogg
Water is more powerful than stone. Allowed enough time, sustained dripping will eventually wear away impregnable rock.
For many, the South African network of patronage seems too deeply rooted, its parasitic tentacles too tight to ever break. But in their haste to write off this young democracy, critics overlook a system of checks and balances that extend far beyond the high profile Public Protector, judiciary and free media.
Take the seemingly boring office of the Auditor General, a bulwark whose value is hugely underestimated. The AG’s staff showed their worth again in the CEF’s 2016 annual report where they disclose details around the stinky sale of SA’s 10m barrels of crude oil reserves.
Energy Minister Tina Joematt-Petterson told the country the reserves netted R5bn. Thanks to the AG – and yesterday’s Business Day newspaper – we now know the true level of corruption was even bigger. The AG says only R3.9bn of the supposed R5bn actually made it into the national coffers. Considering the reserves should have fetched at least R6.5bn, those snouts in this particular trough were greedier, more disgusting than anyone imagined.
