MAMPARA OF THE WEEK

Baleka Mbete

Former speaker still speaks too much

We all hoped the Headscarf Queen would disappear into obscurity after she was rejected by ANC delegates at Nasrec. But now she has embarrassed the whole country on Al Jazeera. The jury is still out on the state of her sobriety when she appeared before a live audience to field questions from a sharp host. Asked about a World Bank report that states ours is the most unequal society, she responded: “The World Bank is not God.” She had other gems up her sleeve, pleading ignorance about the extent of corruption during the Zuma years, and inexplicably defending the R240m wasted on Nkandla. Some people were touting this Mampara as a future president. We shudder to think what would have become of this country if that had happened.