Songezo Zibi on solid MPs, global chaos and Parliament’s problems

The episode was filmed before the public confirmation of the coalition talks that later led to the formation of the Unite for Change initiative, offering a snapshot of Zibi’s thinking ahead of the merger moment.

Reflecting on his first stretch in Parliament, Zibi told Politically Aweh that the institution is far from lazy. “There really is a lot of work in Parliament. I will never laugh at people who fall asleep in the afternoon in that session,” he said. But he also stressed that committees desperately need more people with real professional experience. “You need a couple of doctors and nurses on the health portfolio committee. You know what I mean? There’s just not enough people with that kind of experience to serve on the committees.”

As chair of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts, Zibi explained Scopa’s mission with painful accuracy: “Our job is to minimise the loss of taxpayers’ money. Yes. Simple,” he said. Then he summed up how money oversight works when it comes to making sure taxpayers’ money is well spent: “We are chasing last year’s money.”

Zibi also praised MPs across the aisle regardless of their party. “From right across all the other political parties, there are really solid people. The EFF has solid people. MK has some solid people. The DA has solid people.” His point was simple. The issue is not the existence of good people. It is that there are not enough of them.

Global politics came up too, including US President Donald Trump’s decision to skip the incoming G20 hosted by South Africa. Zibi summarised it in classic deadpan fashion: “The G20 is bigger than just the US, and the US has been separating itself from everybody else because they have got a president who smokes something.” Pressed further, he added: “I think he is sniffing something actually.”

The conversation also touched on the recent surge in publicised bribery attempts in local journalism. Zibi welcomed the transparency: “It was so edifying for me to see a journalist expose an attempt to bribe him. It does so much for journalism.”

The podcast offers a rare look at Parliament through the eyes of someone who refuses to sugarcoat the work. It is a reminder that accountability is not abstract. It is lived, argued and fought for every day. DM

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