It feels a little like some of our politicians are trying to grow a backbone.
But at the same time, others are causing us to raise a suspicious eyebrow.
It seems that President Cyril Ramaphosa is on the warpath with ANC cadres who bring the party into disrepute.
In fact, because of the long fingers of some of its members, the party’s reputation is very much in tatters and now it’s finally hauling those people before its Integrity Commission.
It all stems from Ramaphosa having addressed the issue of corruption in the strongest words yet on the issue, coming from the presidency.
And I want to believe that it’s all happening because he has just reached the point where he is totally and completely gatvol.
In fact, the open letter he wrote recently gave me the impression that that is exactly what’s happening; that he has reached a point of having had enough of his thieving comrades.
I could almost hear the disgust in his voice as I read the letter.
In it he calls his own party “Accused Number One,” which of course put many noses out of joint, most notably that of his predecessor Jacob Zuma, who replied with his own open letter.
As an aside, having been unimpressed with Zuma’s past speeches and eloquence, I was pleasantly surprised and impressed with his writing skills.
So much so, that I was left wondering whether he actually wrote it himself. But that’s a thought for another day.
While I like Ramaphosa wanting the party’s Integrity Commission to sanction the rotten apples, I much prefer the suggestion that the party’s elders deal with the problem.
I have always believed in a system of elders leading the nation in some way or form.
The problem is that those who are being investigated for corruption can always find supporters and laws to wiggle out of the tight spots they find themselves in.
Take the whole PPE corruption issue.
There aren’t any laws that prevent the families of politicians from doing business with the state.
But there are things like integrity and ethics, which are seldom raised as arguments or deterrents, when in fact they should be.
I made the same argument when Zuma was in charge; that our leaders need to be above reproach for the most part.
Yes, we can overlook the occasional human failing and honest ignorance.
But members of the ruling party have now become repeat offenders and the party has been in crisis, managing one corruption scandal after another, year after year.
And the impression we as the public has, is that the perpetrators almost always get away scot-free.
In the worst case scenario, they are euphemistically “redeployed,” which is far from being a deterrent.
Being redeployed to a cushy desk job, with perks intact, sounds more like a reward than punishment.