Zimbabwean First Lady Grace Mugabe was due to appear in court on Tuesday facing assault charges. She would have followed the appearance of South Africa’s deputy minister of Higher Education, Mduduzi Manana, in the same court, for similar charges. Instead, Mugabe vanished, making a farce of South Africa’s law enforcement. By BHEKI C. SIMELANE.

There has been persistent unease about whether the public protector, advocate Busisiwe Mkhwebane, was the fit and proper person to fill Thuli Madonsela’s shoes. After yesterday’s damning court ruling in the SA Reserve Bank case and amid the Zumafication of the country, can we afford to continue to give her the benefit of the doubt? By JANET HEARD.

The ANC in KwaZulu-Natal is the boss, but of late it’s had the need to feel out some possible allies very publicly. Its message has been unity instead of battle ahead of the party’s elective conference in December, but this week’s court case on who should be in charge of the province could yet throw all this in disarray. By CARIEN DU PLESSIS.

President Jacob Zuma has regularly told church leaders that they “must mind their own business” and rather “pray for their leaders to do better”. BJ Vorster and PW Botha did the same. Zuma’s latest comments were made after, among others, the South African Council of Churches urged ANC MPs to remove Zuma by voting him out in last week’s no-confidence vote. Zuma claimed that such sentiments were “un-Christian” and that “believers should pray for their leaders to do better”. He said this again last weekend when addressing St John’s Apostolic Faith Mission Church in Evaton, south of Johannesburg. Just like church leaders ignored Vorster and Botha, they will, no doubt, ignore Zuma. By RUSSELL POLLITT.

Asking politicians to decide whether political party funding should be regulated might seem a bit like inviting turkeys to vote for Christmas. But this is the task currently before Parliament, where MPs this week will hear submissions on the funding of political parties. On Tuesday, strong arguments were presented on the need for greater transparency about where political parties get their money. In the past, resistance to this idea has been strong – and united across the political board. By REBECCA DAVIS.

While Minister of Social Development Bathabile Dlamini skipped a Sassa presentation to Scopa on Tuesday to attend, instead, the launch at Constitutional Hill of a mobile app, new acting interim CEO, Pearl Bhengu, braved a barrage of tough questions from sceptical and crabby committee members. While Bhengu held her ground admirably, chair Themba Godi said Scopa was concerned that offcials were not serious about using SAPO to pay grants and were deliberately dragging out the process so that CPS would have to once again come to the rescue. By MARIANNE THAMM.

The claws came out across the parliamentary precinct on Tuesday. SAPS and Hawks generals received a snotklap from the police committee, which sent the SAPS packing for not submitting anti-gang strategy documents in good time and then stopped the acting, acting Hawks head’s presentation after he said: “We are not winning the war (against crime).” And the ANC proved it was at war with itself when five of its MPs boycotted the public services and administration committee, demanding action against its outspoken chairperson, Makhosi Khoza, for conduct unbecoming, as the minister, Faith Muthambi, snubbed MPs. By MARIANNE MERTEN.

Marikana should have been a turning point. It wasn’t. Five years after the massacre, the country still fails to come to terms with its apartheid heritage and its failure to benefit the country’s majority. By GREG NICOLSON.

In the aftermath of the no confidence vote of last week the ANC is shaken. President Jacob Zuma and some of his allies are calling for disciplinary action for ANC members who voted for the motion, describing this as “counter-revolutionary” and contrary to their duties under the Constitution. The organisation is less united than ever. But is the opposition ready to take advantage of this disarray? The DA call for new elections took its own caucus and all other opposition parties by surprise. There is some way to go before the opposition can ready itself to win broad confidence for itself as a united force, should the ANC fall below 50% in the 2019 elections. By RAYMOND SUTTNER.

Gauteng Health MEC Gwen Ramokgopa hopes to delay payment of damages in a landmark medical negligence case. By SASHA STEVENSON.

The Southern Cape wildfires have died down, but for someone, the burn is just beginning. Following the release of a forensic report into what may have caused the inferno, officials say the search is on for the culprits, who will face the full might of the law. Meanwhile, Knysna needs to find R4-billion to R5-billion to fix the damage. By MARELISE VAN DER MERWE.

Illegal miners, organised under the banner of Mining Affected Communities United in Action (MACUA), took to the streets of Pretoria on Tuesday and marched on the Department of Minerals Resources to deliver a memorandum demanding the scrapping of the Mineral And Petroleum Resources Development Act and to decriminalise zama zamas. By ORATENG LEPODISE.

On the fifth anniversary of the Marikana Massacre on 16 August, it is timely to recall the actions and inactivity of our President and Deputy Present regarding the ghastly killings. By PETER ALEXANDER.

The Post Office’s role in grant payments is unclear. By Barbara Maregele for GROUNDUP.

The North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria on Tuesday set aside Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane’s report that sought to change the constitutional mandate of the South African Reserve Bank (SARB). And the Public Protector has been ordered to pay costs in a scathing judgment that raised questions over why the scope of the initial investigation was extended without explanation, whose comments were actually included in the final report, and what appeared to be the Public Protector’s “somewhat unrepentant alignment with one side of the public debate”. By MARIANNE MERTEN.

Gauteng Transport MEC, Ismail Vadi has lifted his imposed shut-down of five taxi ranks in Soweto following an agreement between two rival taxi associations in the area. It now remains to be seen whether this agreement will provide a lasting end to the violence that has claimed no fewer than 13 lives over the past year. By PUSELETSO NTHATE.

Accurate police and court data is needed to understand organised crime and who is committing it. By Martin Ewi for ISS TODAY.

It has been widely reported that at school level, children with disabilities face serious barriers to accessing education. But at tertiary level the picture isn’t much better, with 80% of potential students with disabilities not attending a tertiary institution. It may be time to get a lot more creative in promoting inclusivity. By MARELISE VAN DER MERWE.

Head of the Western Cape Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences unit Brigadier Sonja Harri, who has over 30 years’ experience and has been instrumental in helping to solve a myriad high-profile cases including the brutal murder and rape of Anene Booysen, has been languishing at home for eight months while she faces questionable charges of misconduct. Meanwhile, the region’s deputy provincial commissioner of detectives, Major-General Patrick Mbotho, who exercises command and oversight of this crucial unit, allegedly posted pornographic messages onto an official police WhatsApp group in July. He’s still at work. By MARIANNE THAMM.

Amid the ongoing analysis of the relative power of the different personalities in the ANC, one of the big questions is whether those ANC MPs who voted to remove President Jacob Zuma last week will be disciplined. If they are, that will show that Zuma and his supporters still have much political power. If they are not, it will demonstrate that people can disobey Zuma and get away with it, which could inspire others to follow suit. Zuma has now said that those who disobeyed the party whip should be disciplined. But he may find it much harder to follow through in action. By STEPHEN GROOTES.

The ANC’s leadership is divided over who should be the next party president. The vote, however, comes down to members and as the ANC's national conference gets closer, divisions are becoming obviously clear in the party’s regions and provinces. By GREG NICOLSON.

Premier Helen Zille’s Day Zero of March next year is highly credible, and without drastic action we could run out of water. The city and the province could find solutions by pulling in the experts who can play a role in helping us through the next summer. We need to plan for the worst, and hope for the best. Now. By ROGER PARSONS.

How UCT takes account of the range of responses to works of art and their curation will require an explicit discussion about such matters. By MAX PRICE.

Corrupt practices are legitimised, slowly but surely drawing ordinary government officials into the web of illegitimate criminal practices and procedures, thereby structurally consolidating it at all social levels, and deeply entrenching the power of this new predatory capitalist class within the governing ANC and the society at large. By MIKE MORRIS.

Since we published “How South Africa Works” two years ago, the country’s economic environment has deteriorated, a consequence of the imperative of staying in power trumping policies that could promote investment and employment. So what to do? By GREG MILLS and JEFFREY HERBST.

In the factional politicking towards the ANC December national elective conference, some circles are now pushing for the ANC MPs who broke the party line and voted for, or abstained in, last week’s no confidence motion in President Jacob Zuma to be disciplined. The vote was secret, and the ballot papers neither carried serial numbers nor MPs’ names. So unless someone confesses, how votes were cast remains speculation. But that’s not really the point. It is the silencing of those critical of the current state of ANC affairs. By MARIANNE MERTEN.

Steenvilla in Cape Town is seen as a model development. Much will depend on its success or failure. By Ashleigh Furlong for GROUNDUP.

South Africa must trim its excesses, and make work more accessible for more people. By Jakkie Cilliers for ISS TODAY.

The #GuptaLeaks have finally solved the mystery of the blue light vehicles that illegally ferried hundreds of guests to the infamous Sun City wedding extravaganza in April 2013. By NEWS24.

For South Africans who have become so cynical over the last few years that they have lost faith in the criminal justice system, or justice whatsoever, the last week has served as mere confirmation of their view. The case around Deputy Higher Education Minister Mduduzi Manana, who has admitted to assaulting a woman at a nightclub, appears to prove that a class of people have been created who are able to act as if they are above the law because they are in fact de facto above the law. He is not the only person who behaves this way, but the first to get caught on camera in such a way that journalists can drop the word “allegedly” from their reports. The reaction to his non-arrest, and then the gestures of support for him, reveal exactly how our political system has created a legally connected upper class, the people who assume they really are above the rest of us. By STEPHEN GROOTES.

Fear is a default measure for most South African women in everyday life. Peace cannot co-exist with fear. It is possible to push back paralysis and build a society without fear. By RIKKY MINYUKU.

Evita Bezuidenhout celebrates 20 years of her Darling venue Evita se Perron with a weekly episode of 'Evita's Free Speech'. Here's the Episode 103. By PIETER-DIRK UYS.

ANC MP Makhosi Khoza has been one of her party’s most outspoken members against President Jacob Zuma. She was clear she planned to vote against the president in the recent no confidence vote. As her opponents in the ANC prepare to pounce, GREG NICOLSON spoke to Khoza on Sunday.

Mistakes have been made, KPMG acknowledged on Friday – 42 days after Scorpio and amaBhungane revealed how the audit firm saw no evil in client Gupta Inc. In reaction to extreme public pressure, KPMG has announced action against three partners pending a review into the firm’s work for the Guptas. But as yet, the firm has not taken public accountability for any concrete wrongdoing other than its partners’ attendance of the 2013 Gupta wedding, and a failure to cut ties with the Guptas earlier than it did. By SCORPIO

Aghast at the violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, J. BROOKS SPECTOR looks to history, psychology and contemporary politics to try to understand what happened and why it took President Trump two tries to even get close to expressing a sense of moral outrage.

Until we say enough is enough, courts will continue to mete out partial justice in the service of patriarchy and to reinforce the status quo. By LUVO NELANI.

The refusal of large numbers of health workers to perform abortions is driving women to seek unsafe backstreet procedures. Professor EDDIE MHLANGA for HEALTH-E NEWS calls on medical schools to address students’ bias against abortion and teach them how to remedy botched procedures.

Caster Semenya became the 800m World Champion in London on Sunday night. She cruised home with a personal best, adding to her bronze medal in the 1500m, and her Olympic gold. At a time where the sport is desperate for an entertainer, it needs to look no further than South Africa’s golden girl. By ANTOINETTE MULLER

Anglo American and Gold Fields may settle with miners and their families. By Pete Lewis for GROUNDUP.

KPMG has been implicated in the wake of #Guptaleaks revelations. The CEO of KPMG South Africa, Trevor Hoole, released a statement today admitting it had made mistakes. Here is the statement:

When it comes to media freedom – which is everyone's freedom, we should never again have to use the fig leaf of “I didn’t know”. BY JOE THLOLOE, who addressed the recent event, The Gathering – Media Edition.

Horn of Africa countries must stay out of the zero-sum diplomatic crisis, and co-ordinate if involvement is necessary. By Berouk Mesfin for ISS TODAY.

Trump ups the rhetoric against North Korea, van Niekerk misses out on another gold, and piglets gene-coded in medical breakthrough.

The Yalu River – the boundary between North Korea and China – was where American and Chinese troops met and engaged in combat in the midst of the Korean conflict back in 1950-51. The Chinese had taken the defeat of their North Korean allies by UN forces rather badly and so they massively intervened. But, even more than North Korea’s defeat, the Chinese were much more discomfited by the possibility that the US would have its ground forces perched right on the Chinese border. J. BROOKS SPECTOR looks at the newest Korean crisis in light of that history and the psychology of crisis management, and is not particularly amused or comforted so far by reassurances from US officials.

From the time of the notorious 2013 Sun City wedding, the Guptas’ activities in South Africa have attracted a great deal of negative international media attention. Indeed, the reputational damage caused by the Guptas’ state capture to the global image of South Africa is probably incalculable. But one man might be able to help calculate it: Ajay Gupta, who for a full decade – until 2016 – sat on the board of Brand South Africa. That’s the body responsible for crafting a positive image of South Africa overseas. By SCORPIO, AMABHUNGANE and NEWS24.

Communities in South Africa, traumatised by relentless gang violence, rape, murder and general criminality, know that the so-called underworld exists in full view of the upperworld, as academic, researcher and author Mark Shaw has revealed in his new book Hitmen for Hire – Exposing South Africa’s Underworld. Shaw’s book attempts to unpack the dark nexus between organised crime, politics and law enforcement, a coalition of sociopaths that poses the biggest threat to South Africa’s democracy. If he could take time out from tweeting, our Minister of Police, Fikile Mbalula, would benefit from a deep plunge into Shaw’s cesspit. By MARIANNE THAMM.

Police Minister Fikile Mbalula on Thursday said the SAPS “neglected” many cases of violence against women by failing to accept cases of gender violence, not investigating reported cases, or losing dockets. Speaking around the same time as Deputy Higher Education Minister Mduduzi Manana appeared in the Randburg Magistrate’s Court – he was released on R5,000 bail on two charges of grievous assault – Mbalula said the police needed to do the right thing, and that no woman should be turned away from a police station. By MARIANNE MERTEN.

Mduduzi Manana, deputy minister of higher education, was let out on bail on Thursday for allegedly violently attacking two women. His court appearance was weird. Whether anyone will hold him to account is unknown. By GREG NICOLSON.

One of the reasons that this political era is generally named after President Jacob Zuma is that it appears everything is tied up with him in some way or another. The rise of corruption, goes the belief, is about Zuma because he came into power already corrupt, and then that contagion spread through government. In many ways he is seen as the root cause of our situation and our problems. But, there is strong evidence to suggest that he has succeeded not just because of his political strength, but also because the very structure of our society has allowed him to. Events that occurred a full decade ago are a good illustration of this. By STEPHEN GROOTES.

Parliament’s Motion of No Confidence to remove President Jacob Zuma may have failed, but that doesn’t mean the opposition doesn’t have a few tricks up its collective sleeve yet. Before the ANC even gets to its electoral congress in December, President Zuma will have to face at least two substantial legal matters coming up in September – as well as a few more parliamentary stunts, no doubt. By REBECCA DAVIS.