Pule exposed: One down but many more in the queue

The Times Editorial: Parliament's Joint Ethics Committee yesterday came down hard on former communications minister Dina Pule, telling her that she had "wilfully misled" it.

Recently fired from the cabinet by President Jacob Zuma, she tried every trick in the book in denying that she had misused her powers as a minister.

But yesterday she was not only found guilty by the committee - it was also decided that the allegations against her be referred to the police and the National Prosecuting Authority for criminal investigation.

This decision by the ethics committee will send a strong message to other public representatives who abuse their powers for their own benefit.

The message is that their time is over and that the people are reclaiming their rights as voting citizens.

A series of Sunday Times exposés detailed how the former minister's boyfriend, Phosane Mngqibisa, benefited from the relationship at taxpayers' expense.

When questioned about this, Pule spouted whatever rubbish she could contrive to deflect attention, even accusing the Sunday Times journalists of launching a vendetta against her.

The verdict by the ethics committee yesterday will give taxpayers and the electorate their confidence back. They now know that a public representative who abuses his powers will be pursued and made to pay.

Such vigour is also needed at the level of provincial and local governments, in which senior officials continue to act with impunity.

If South Africa is to regain its confidence in elected officials - able to believe that their conduct is above board and in the best interests of the citizenry - then it will be a lot closer to achieving the ideals set out in the constitution.

It is to be hoped that parliament's handling of the Pule scandal is a precursor to all the other fat-cat politicians found to have betrayed the electorate being removed from government.