State Capture Reckoning: Ramaphosa Fires Back After Zondo’s Blistering Critique

President insists government is making real progress, Zondo’s not so sure

The heat is back on President Cyril Ramaphosa, and this time it’s coming from none other than the man who led the years-long probe into one of South Africa’s darkest political sagas. Former Chief Justice Raymond Zondo isn’t mincing words and South Africans are listening.

Last week, Zondo stunned the country when he openly expressed his anguish over watching the very ministers flagged in his State Capture Commission findings not only avoid accountability, but receive promotions under Ramaphosa’s watch.

“It was like the president was saying, ‘I don’t care what you have found about these people. I think they are good enough to be promoted,’” Zondo remarked sharply.

That blunt accusation has now reignited the public debate around what the government is actually doing to clean house post-Zuma-era corruption.

Ramaphosa: “Progress is being made”

On Monday, the Presidency struck back. In a detailed report submitted to Parliament, Ramaphosa’s office laid out what it claims is measurable progress in executing the State Capture Commission’s recommendations.

Of the 60 key actions identified in the president’s 2022 plan:

• 48% are either completed or close to completion

• 23% are still on track

• 29% are delayed but receiving attention

Spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said that nearly R11 billion in stolen public funds has been recovered, and sweeping institutional reforms have been implemented. The president’s office claims this includes a bolstered NPA and strengthened law enforcement capacity.

“This is about more than just prosecutions,” Magwenya explained. “It’s about fixing the very systems that allowed state capture to thrive in the first place.”

But South Africans aren’t convinced

The government’s report has done little to calm a public that’s grown weary of anti-corruption talk with little visible follow-through. On X (formerly Twitter), South Africans vented:

“We’re watching people with damning evidence against them sit comfortably in Cabinet. That’s not reform—that’s a slap in the face,” one user posted.

Others pointed to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), which continues to face serious criticism over its slow movement in bringing high-profile perpetrators to justice.

“The NPA moves like it’s afraid of power. That’s the problem,” wrote another commenter.

Zondo’s discomfort runs deeper than politics

To understand the full weight of Zondo’s remarks, it’s important to look at what he represents. This is the same judge who sat through hundreds of hours of testimony detailing the web of corruption that gripped state institutions during the Zuma years. He listened to whistleblowers, analyzed mountains of evidence, and emerged with a thick, damning final report.

For him to express moral discomfort over having to swear in ministers implicated in corruption isn’t just a political swipe, it’s a personal and institutional alarm bell.

And let’s not forget, his commission didn’t just investigate; it recommended specific actions. When those recommendations are ignored or delayed, it sends a message: that accountability is optional.

The road ahead: A test of political will

Ramaphosa maintains that reform is ongoing and insists that the true test of these changes will be their long-term impact, whether or not they prevent state capture from ever happening again.

But in a country still healing from the betrayal of public trust, words must now become action. The public wants arrests. The public wants resignations. And most of all, the public wants a government that doesn’t blue-tick the truth.

For now, the jury is still out.

{Source: The Citizen}

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