We've strayed far from the SA of our dreams

Minister Bathabile Dlamini’s dreadful conduct sends a message that must be heeded, warns Redi Tlhabi

We are getting used to this. This is the dumbing-down of debate, the arrogance of political office bearers and their breathtaking ignorance of the laws that govern their operations.

Social Development Minister Bathabile Dlamini wears her heart on her sleeve. Her emotions are constantly on display and, sadly, she has not grasped the value of self-mastery. She throws a fit of pique when a simple answer to a valid question would suffice.

It is clear from their handling of the grants issue that the Department of Social Development and the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) are not concerned about the rule of law. I laughed (cynically) when I heard calls for President Jacob Zuma to fire Dlamini.

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Fire her for what? For ignoring the highest court in the land and not understanding her constitutional mandate? That is asking too much of Zuma.

He also does not understand or value the constitution. He reaffirmed this (not for the first time) on the day that Dlamini was appearing in parliament to account for this mess. He said we must wait to see whether grants will be paid on April 1. He was exasperated when he asked: "How do you fire someone before the event?" 

Mr President, the event has already happened. The event is not on April 1. The event was on the day the highest court in the land, the Constitutional Court, ruled that the contract between Sassa and Cash Paymaster Services was invalid.

That was in 2014.

Instead of acting on this pertinent ruling, the minister and Sassa took a chill pill. They did nothing for close to three years and waited for this invalid contract to play itself out, with the real hope of it being extended.

And once again, the Constitutional Court has now instructed Sassa to account and provide full details of any new agreements with CPS.

This was necessitated by the minister's inability to answer valid questions when she appeared before parliament's standing committee on public accounts this week and when she addressed the nation in a press conference that can only be described as a tragicomedy.

The president and the minister still don't understand what this is about. The issue here is not the department's ability to pay grants, but rather the illegality of that contract and the department's casual dismissal of a Constitutional Court ruling.

Zuma and his minister are reducing this to a pedestrian "as long as people get paid on April 1" debate.

The point is, we have a minister and a president who don't grasp the law, who are not interested in acquainting themselves with its requirements and, more jarringly, who are not committed to constitutionalism, the bedrock of our democracy. They just don't get it.

block_quotes_start We must ask ourselves what kind of country we are living in and the distance between that and the country of our dreams, built on the constitution block_quotes_end

Or if they do get it, they just don't give a damn. The law and courts are just a nuisance.

So what do we do now?

We must ask ourselves what kind of country we are living in and the distance between that and the country of our dreams, built on the constitution.

Our constitution is not a far-fetched aspiration or pie in the sky. Its ideals are achievable. To respect the law and respond to the dictates of the courts are not complicated things.

The law does not demand impossible standards from office bearers; it only asks that they fulfil their oath of office.

A sad realisation comes with this Sassa issue. We have known it, but in the interests of being politically correct and careful not to offend, we have ignored it. The time has come to admit there has been a decline in political leadership. There are exceptions, but generally the best and brightest are not in charge of our fate.

As citizens, we cannot let this spectacular ignorance and arrogance win.

• Tlhabi is a social commentator and Radio 702 talkshow host.