Grant Pascoe
South Africans are tired of corruption. They are tired of seeing powerful people walk away without consequences. For a long time, it looked like nothing would change. But things are starting to move. Not with speeches. With search warrants and investigations.
When Cyril Ramaphosa became ANC President in 2017, he found a government that was already captured. Corruption was not an accident. It was organised. It sat inside tenders, contracts, police units and even the justice system. Ramaphosa did not go after it with slogans. He used the law. He allowed the Zondo Commission to continue. He authorised SIU investigations across national departments, municipalities and state entities. Eskom. Prasa. Digital Vibes. Covid PPE. SASSA. Water and Housing projects. If there was public money involved, it was put under review.
Perhaps Commissions Were Not Pointless
People said he was too slow. They said commissions were pointless. But now the results are clear. The SAPS Commercial Crimes Unit raided twenty-six properties in Cape Town linked to one point six billion rand in municipal tenders. Officials are being questioned. The SIU has referred many people for prosecution. Asset forfeiture teams are taking back houses and cars bought through corruption.
More exposure is coming. Senior police officers and government officials are now giving information on how criminal networks operated from inside the state. Names that were once protected are now recorded in affidavits.
The work has begun. Whether it reaches the end depends on the ANC. If it stops the process, it confirms the worst about itself. If it allows it to continue, it may still regain some trust. The question is simple.
Will Cyril Ramaphosa be backed or blocked?
