Alec Hogg: Jacob Zuma is in jail, SA democracy celebrates

With only minutes before last night's midnight deadline, Jacob Zuma was arrested and will, this morning, wake up in jail. The significance can hardly be exaggerated. Zuma did everything possible to avoid arrest, including Sunday's public show of force by an armed mob at his Nkandla homestead. But with SA's forces for law and order showing resolve, the support base dissipated and was virtually non-existent when Jacob Zuma was taken into custody last night. Here's the link to the story on BizNews..* Here's a rationally argued article which explains why the Western world may never know the true origin of Covid-19. A BizNews community member who is a retired pathologist pointed me to an excellent piece in Medscape, a publication for healthcare professionals. it is written by Elisabeth Rosenthal, a physician, former NYT reporter and now editor in chief of Kaiser Health News which publishes Medscape. She explains why it's most unlikely the world will ever get to know whether covid-19 leaked from the US part-funded Wuhan lab. The easy-to-read article is available here without charge, but you do need to register for access. Well worth the effort..* I was among many who got sucked into the revisionist history of now late Kenneth Kuanda. This updated narrative is KK deserves eternal credit for stepping aside after losing the 1991 election, a rarity for an African leader, especially at that time. Conveniently omitted, however, is that KK had by then ruled for 27 years, had only called the election because of US pressure, and later claimed he had been "tricked" into giving up power (his opponent got 76% of the vote). Thanks to the inimitable RW Johnson, I'm now better informed. Here's the link to the former Oxford Don's superb piece that's on Politicsweb..___STEADY_PAYWALL___.* A similar theme is playing out in Haiti where president Jovenel Moïse was yesterday assassinated in his residence, with a bullet to the head. More than two centuries after former slaves created the independent state, the Haitian democratic experiment – often referenced by former SA president Thabo Mbeki – continues to flounder. Here's the link to what is today's best read story at our partners The Wall Street Journal..* A reflection of just how much the heart of free enterprise is changing is in the anti-trust focus of the US's Democratic Party government. In the past, such legislation was specifically aimed at improving the efficiency of the economy and welfare of consumers. Today's US trust-busters say concentrations of corporate power threaten democracy. Amazon is in their sights. Here's the in-depth story in today's Wall Street Journal..NB FOR YOUR WALL STREET JOURNAL ACCESS….As a Premium subscriber you are entitled to full membership of wsj.com (normal price $29 a month). Be sure to action your access through the Premium link on the BizNews website. Because of The Wall Street Journal's credential requirements, be sure to create a password which has at least 8 characters and includes at least one letter and one number – NB it MAY NOT contain any special characters (ie #, !, @ etc). To maintain access to WSJ.com, you MUST enter our partner's website via BizNews Premium at least once a month. A final PS, if you had previously signed up for WSJ you'll need to clear the cookies from your device. Our help desk can assist – support@biznews.com.

Alec Hogg: Jacob Zuma is in jail, SA democracy celebrates

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