Yes! Let there be more ‘Hollywood-style arrests’— we love them
What a time to be alive! A string of daily arrests by the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (the Hawks) appears to indicate that we are finally seeing a real fight against corruption emerging in SA. As the Hawks’ national operation continues, those who have spent the past decade feasting on public funds meant for service delivery now find themselves in a state of permanent apprehension. Rumours abound that some are even fleeing their homes before the inevitable arrival of those red-, yellow- and black-branded Volkswagens at the gate.
Others have gone so far as to plant false news stories with “friendlier” print publications than this one, in hopes of drumming up enough support and outrage on their behalf perhaps to cast aspersions on the operations of the excellent National Prosecuting Authority (NPA).
The Bell Pottinger public relations playbook even made a brief and predictable comeback this week as ANC secretary-general Ace Magashule’s supporters attempted to elicit public sympathy for him in anticipation of an arrest warrant which, we are told, has not (yet?) been issued.
This pre-emptive defence strategy — with accompanying conspiracy theories invoking “white monopoly capital” among others — is yet more evidence that we are witnessing a revival of the criminal justice system in SA as the rebuilding of its independent institutions continues apace. As for “Hollywood-style arrests”, well, we love to see them! If the lurid succession of luxury sedans and supercars being seized by the Hawks is anything to go by, Hollywood-style is precisely how the crooks evidently spent the looted public money and savings stolen from the poor and the elderly.
Now the police must be equally flashy as they make their arrests. These individuals in their Ferraris and Bentley Continentals wanted to attract attention; let it come from a series of equally attention-grabbing perp walks. Nothing less will slake the justified anger of South Africans who have been at the mercy of corrupt leaders for well over a decade.
We must, however, be vigilant; this is also the time when shady politicians will use the very constituents from whom they stole as media fodder for their defence strategies, soliciting support in the form of marches outside the courts, and claiming political prosecutions and victimisation as they are handcuffed and hauled before the judiciary up and down the country.
As I have said in this column before, South
Africans have an opportunity now to regain and rebuild trust and confidence in the criminal justice system.
A revived sense of confidence in public institutions and the rule of law is directly connected to public trust in our democratic system. And the more that people trust that our democracy works, the more likely they are actively to participate in it.
A public attitudes survey by the pan-African research network Afrobarometer confirms that SA is indeed emerging from “nine wasted years” under former president Jacob Zuma — however much he may detest the term. During Zuma’s tenure, between 2011 and 2015 alone, public faith in our democratic system plunged from 66% to 48%.
SA came in last place in this year’s Edelman Trust Barometer survey of public trust in government in 28 countries around the world, with South Africans trusting their government the least.
We trust our government less than the people of Russia, Argentina and Brazil do theirs.
Public attitudes towards governments and the democratic system are a reflection of people’s lived experiences, as well as their belief (or not) that the state delivers on its responsibilities and that the rule of law is applicable to all, regardless of political connections or financial resources.
The NPA has assured South Africans that it is processing 87 priority cases that will lead to the arrest and trial of those at the top of the feeding frenzy of public funds.
But running a world-class prosecuting authority — something that we desperately need at this juncture — is costly indeed. Now more than ever, the NPA should not be faced with a precarious financial situation at a time when it must prosecute not only corruption, fraud and racketeering but crimes associated with the scourge of genderbased violence.
The tragedy of a key institution such as the NPA being underfunded and under-resourced is mirrored in the financial insecurity of institutions such as the South African Revenue Service and Statistics SA, among others.
As this government continues to audit which public entities were gutted of leadership talent and systematically destroyed by the Zuma administration, it must prioritise allocating scarce resources to key institutions with strong leadership which have a legitimate chance of being turned around, instead of directing ever more funding towards institutional black holes, such as a number of our failing state-owned entities.