An opinion piece critiques former President Jacob Zuma's role in fostering a patronage system within the ANC, linking it to ongoing corruption in state institutions. The author suggests summoning Zuma to the Madlanga Commission to address the 'million membership' campaign that admitted unvetted members. This system, they argue, prioritized loyalty over competence, robbing the youth of opportunities.
The opinion piece, published on November 18, 2025, in Daily Maverick's Opinionista section, questions why Jacob Zuma, during his tenure as ANC president, allowed the 'million membership' campaign to flood the party with unvetted and unscrupulous individuals. For a fee of R10, anyone could become a member instantly, regardless of background, which the author describes as a drive to boost the egos of ANC leaders rather than advance democracy.
This led to the influx of figures like Brown Mogotsi into the ranks, turning cadre deployment into a recruitment tool for thugs and career criminals. Key institutions such as the South African Police Service (SAPS), Department of Social Development, justice cluster, Transnet, and Eskom became infiltrated by procurement hustlers, particularly in supply chain departments.
The patronage system operated by securing votes through inflated contracts—often 200% or 300% above value—resulting in fruitless and wasteful expenditure that troubles the Auditor-General. Funds were allegedly siphoned into black refuse bags and brown envelopes to influence ANC conferences and meetings. Cadres were pressured to prepay crooked service providers for undelivered or substandard work, such as unused stationery worth hundreds of thousands of rands.
The author portrays Zuma as a 'Father Christmas' who distributed contracts instead of toys, building an ecosystem where entrepreneurship meant exploiting the state rather than delivering value. Loyalty trumped competence, depriving the youth of a prosperous future for the benefit of the greedy. While naming mid-tier figures like Brown Mogotsi and Edwin Sodi, the piece highlights the Guptas as the 'real sharks,' referencing scandals like the Nkandla fire pool and Tembisa Hospital fraud involving Lamborghinis.
This legacy, the opinion argues, sustains Zuma's cult following, with supporters yearning for a return to those 'good times' amid romanticized corruption.