Zondo Commission of inquiry opened the eyes of South Africans

The judicial commission of inquiry led by newly appointed Chief Justice Raymond Zondo investigated the alleged State capture, corruption, and fraud in the public sector including the state organs. It was established in 2018 by former president Jacob Zuma.

This came after former Public Protector Thuli Madonsela issued a damning report recommending that the president appoint a commission to investigate allegations of state capture. Zuma had the constitutional right to appoint a judge to preside over the commission, but he couldn’t because he was “implicated.” The Judge was then appointed by the then Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng.

As a result, the commission held hearings for over 400 days, during which over 300 witnesses testified before the commission. President Ramaphosa testified before the commission in his capacity as president of the ANC and as president of the country. The commission’s work has since been completed, and the report has been delivered to the president’s office in four parts. The Department of Correctional Services has confirmed the formation of a team to work on the implementation of the commission’s three parts report.

The Zondo Commission provided a window through which the public can see into the dirty secrets of the ANC during its worst decade in power.

The justice department is taking into account the recommendations of the Zondo commission as it mulls how the Investigating Directorate (ID) can be morphed into a permanent anti-corruption structure, Justice and Correctional Services Minister Ronald Lamola said on Tuesday.

Lamola said it was not fair to suggest that the entity “has been slumbering”; it faced constraints, and these must be addressed with a view to allowing the ID to evolve into a permanent, sustainable structure.

Zondo in February said it would take “an army of prosecutors” to act on the recommendations of the state capture inquiry he has led for more than four years.