Anticorruption Eagles would fly higher than Hawks

Your main editorial on August 12, “We need to ensure our head of prosecutions is independent and impartial”, very properly raises questions about the propriety of leaving the fight against corruption in the hands of presidential appointees at a time when, in the words of the chief justice, the malady threatens to become terminal.

Fortunately, our courts have laid down, in binding fashion, five criteria for our anticorruption machinery of state. It must be specialised and have properly trained personnel, independent of political interference or influence and properly resourced with guaranteed funding. The personnel, unlike the Scorpions of old, need to enjoy security of tenure of office.

A legally compliant way to take the fight against the corrupt to the criminals is to establish a new Chapter 9 institution to complement the work of the auditorgeneral and the Office of the Public Protector (in its uncaptured form).

The politicians can choose a name for these Eagles, who will fly higher, see further and go after bigger prey than Hawks do. Their duties will cover the prevention, combating, investigation and prosecution of serious corruption.

The electorate should insist that all political parties commit themselves to the establishment of the Eagles, whose leadership will be identified by parliament, not the executive. Any political parties unwilling to so commit should be punished appropriately at the polls.

Paul Hoffman SC, Accountability Now

Let colonial descendants off hook

This week, acting ANC Western Cape chair Khaya Magaxa called Helen Zille “an unrepentant racist with no regard for millions of South Africans who were marginalised by colonialism”. This was in response to Zille’s reaffirmation that there were positive aspects to colonialism.

The fervour with which positive aspects are denied, given the weight of the evidence to the contrary, strongly suggests a hidden agenda. Probably the rationale is that, by demonising colonialism, the DA (which is still perceived to be a white party), would be demonised and votes would go to other parties.

The descendants of colonialists are not responsible for the actions of their ancestors. In the US, attempts to gain reparations for slavery failed for this reason. Should we blame IFP leader Mangosuthu Buthelezi for the murder of Piet Retief?

If we pursued this reasoning we could argue that because Africa is the “cradle of humankind”, Africans colonised the entire planet — and what reparations are others seeking from them?

Anyone who suggests that there were no positive aspects to colonialism is misinformed, ignorant or dishonest.

The colonialists were guilty of plundering and many other crimes. That cannot be denied by any informed person, but when it comes to exploitation of the masses, in many cases they were amateurs compared to the new regimes.

In much the same way that the majority of black people today are innocent of the plundering by their leaders, so the descendants of the colonial predecessors were innocent of colonial exploitation and, frankly, are tired of being vilified.

Mike Deeks, Cape Town

Black elite must lead racism fight

After I read the heart-wrenching tribute to the late Professor Bongani Mayosi by Professor Xolela Mangcu, “How many Mayosis must be martyred before UCT deals with its toxic racism?” (August 12), I felt the heavy weight that black academics carry in their historic and daily fight against often subliminal manifestations of racism on historically white campuses.

Mangcu challenges the University of Cape Town to use Mayosi’s death to address the racism that plagues black people’s lives at UCT. Maybe the fight against the abiding toxicity of racism must continue to be waged beyond the fences of UCT and other historically white campuses.

There have been a lot of painful narratives about the devastation racism has wrought on the black intelligentsia. It’s time for bold action from the collective of the black elite at all institutions. It cannot be that as black people we allow the best black talent to be wiped off the face of the earth by the evil of racism.

We cannot allow racists to haunt black talent out of institutions of postapartheid SA, as happened to Professor Mangcu at UCT.

The fight against racism belongs to all patriotic South Africans, but victims of the toxicity of racism must be at the forefront of this noble battle. It is in such challenges that people must be inspired by Steve Biko’s rallying call: “Black man, you are on your own.”

Dr Tutu Faleni (PhD)

Bureaucrat bosses turn a blind eye

Those legal practitioners from the Office of the State Attorney who collude with corrupt lawyers from the private sector, “State attorneys’ R80bn scam” (August 12) are doing this with the blessing of senior government officials in charge of government departments.

With many negative reports of failure of government departments to meet their targets, it cannot be true that the senior officials were not aware that some legal practitioners from the Office of the State Attorney were involved in these unbecoming practices.

When the time comes for establishing a genuine government, all government institutions should be staffed with objectively appointed people who are not tainted by the evil characteristics of colonial and apartheid regimes and the present government.

M Nqoro, Cape Town

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