‘Where are the convictions?’

What's in the M&G this week [View this email in your browser]( November 26, 2021 [Mail & Guardian]( [Mail & Guardian]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Instagram]( [YouTube]( Hi there, Three years later, questions are being asked about Ramaphosa’s prosecutor, Shamila Batohi. Plus, why the Democratic Alliance’s “win” of metros is no celebration. This and more in this week’s M&G, available in print and online. [Subscribe now]( In our lead story this week, the national director of public prosecutions is up against internal stonewalling that is rooted in the Zuma years of state capture. Emsie Ferreira writes that a year after he was indicted for fraud and corruption, the state’s case against Ace Magashule appears at risk of unravelling and the conviction of a single top flight politician for state capture remains a mirage, much like the extradition of the Gupta brothers for their central role in the scandal. [Concerns in government are building that the NPA still falters]( three years after Batohi set out to right an organisation that had been captured by the politics of the day, and despite the suspension of powerful culprits and fresh appointments to her deputy directorate. Earlier this week, Khaya Koko reported that [allegations of “political interference” have been levelled against the NPA’s top leadership]( over the stalled arrest of high-ranking police generals implicated in R100-million crime intelligence corruption. Investigative documents seen by the M&G show how service provider Brainwave, its sole director Inbanathan Kistiah and senior generals allegedly created a bogus bidding war for the procurement of social media monitoring equipment to spy on and disrupt the activities of the student movement for free tertiary education. It’s also coalition week and Koko, Lizeka Tandwa and Paddy Harper have us covered with all the latest news and reaction. The ANC may have lost control of five hung metro councils to the DA this week, but the DA [faces five years of governing them with a gun held to its head]( by the Economic Freedom Fighters and ActionSA — or the failure of the councils it now runs. ActionSA’s “flip-flopping” Herman Mashaba has seemingly dragged the DA into its worst nightmare of needing the EFF to govern the Gauteng metros it won last week. The Inkatha Freedom Party, which had previously announced a “governance agreement” with the ANC in hung councils in which either party led, also joined the EFF and ActionSA in the surprise decision to back the DA. Our political team has also gone beyond Gauteng and behind the scenes to look at [the municipalities that face a rocky five years](. Although various coalitions have been formed across the country, many of them are hanging by a thread, with the slightest provocation meaning the newly elected city governments could collapse before May next year. Turning to the environment, Tunicia Phillips reports that [the post-COP26 state of coal has become elevated in global climate diplomacy]( with the first-ever mention of fossil fuel in the final Glasgow Climate Pact. Despite the watering down of the final text from “phasing out coal and fossil fuel subsidies” to “phasing down unabated coal and inefficient fossil-fuel subsidies”, the acknowledgement of coal has been described as a precedent for climate commitments across the world. And don't forget to [check out this week’s Q&A Sessions](. After more than two decades of working with wounded and traumatised leaders, psychologist Nomfundo Mogapi established the Centre for Mental Wellness and Leadership. She speaks to Elna Schütz about how she is an introvert but has found ways to be in a busy world. Good journalism costs money. You’ve heard us trumpet that until our lungs get sore. Which is why it might come as a surprise to learn that we’re offering it to you for next to nothing. Until Monday, you can snatch up our Black Friday deal and join our subscriber community for R2 a month for the first three months. Happy reading. Until Tuesday, Kiri Rupiah & Luke Feltham Enjoy The Ampersand? Share it with your friends [Share]( [Share]( [Tweet]( [Tweet]( [Forward]( [Forward]( [Share]( [Share]( Copyright © 2021 Mail & Guardian Media LTD, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you opted in to receive communications from the Mail & Guardian either at our website or by taking out a print subscription. Our mailing address is: Mail & Guardian Media LTD 25 Owl St BraamfonteinJohannesburg, Gauteng 2001 South Africa [Add us to your address book]( Want to change which mails you receive from Mail & Guardian? [Update your preferences]( to tell us what you do and don't want to receive, or [unsubscribe](. *If you are a paying subscriber, we recommend updating your preferences rather than unsubscribing, as you may miss important information relating to your subscription.