The buck does not stop at the top in this country but on the desk of an unfortunate junior official who is made to carry the blame. In South Africa today no one is prepared to take the blame and show leadership. We are told that national police commissioner Riah Phiyega, whose leadership has come under scrutiny since the 2012 killing of mineworkers in Marikana, is shifting the blame. She is said to have told President Jacob Zuma in her report on Friday that the decision to storm the koppie on which the miners had gathered was taken collectively.Although we sympathise with Phiyega and acknowledge that she had been in the job for only two months when the Marikana massacre happened, she was then, and still is, the head of the nation's police.She is accountable for their actions.We do not agree with her and others who say that she must not be blamed for the massacre. We also do not agree with those who say former commissioner Bheki Cele should be blamed.Phiyega took the job and vowed to protect all South Africans. She took the job knowing how high the stakes were. Now we expect her to show leadership and stop singing: "It wasn't me."If Phiyega claims she was not responsible for the bad policing in Marikana - who was? If, as she claims, it was a collective decision to storm the koppie, who had the final word? Did she endorse the decision?We find it hard to believe that police acted against the miners on their own and that there were no orders from the top.We are also concerned that the nine provincial commissioners who this week rallied behind Phiyega, saying it was unfair to single her out and blame her for the killings, have remained quiet for the past three years.If they, too, say she must not shoulder the blame, then who should? The buck stops with whom? This country will limp from one inquiry to another because, from the head of state to the junior manager, no one wants to take responsibility...