The South African Federation of Trade Unions (SAFTU) is outraged by President Cyril Ramaphosa’s decision to appoint yet another commission — this time to investigate why the recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) were never implemented. This amounts to the bizarre and shameful spectacle of the state appointing a commission to investigate itself for its failure to act on the findings of a previous commission!
If this sounds absurd, it’s because it is.
This is not only wasteful — it undermines justice, erodes accountability, and deepens the public’s loss of trust in our democracy. Consider the following:
- The Zondo Commission into State Capture exposed the industrial-scale looting of state-owned enterprises and the direct complicity of political elites. Yet prosecutions are painfully slow, key enablers remain in office, and billions in stolen public funds have not been recovered. The very same state that sat idle while Eskom, Transnet and others were hollowed out now pretends to be surprised at the consequences.
- The Marikana (Farlam) Commission investigated the brutal police killing of 34 striking mineworkers in 2012. To this day, no senior official has been held to account, and key recommendations for police reform — including demilitarisation and clear rules of engagement — remain unimplemented. The state killed workers in defence of capital, and then buried justice in red tape.
- The Life Esidimeni Arbitration exposed the callous deaths of 144 mental health patients due to gross negligence and cost-cutting by the Gauteng Department of Health. Despite overwhelming evidence and heartfelt testimony from families, justice has been delayed, and the systemic failures in public healthcare continue without reform or accountability.
- The Nugent Commission into SARS laid bare how one of the most efficient and respected revenue services in the world was deliberately dismantled during the state capture era. Yet the full clean-up has stalled, and key architects of that destruction have not been held accountable. The result is a weakened institution and a state struggling to collect the revenue needed for public services.
- The Mokgoro, Mpati and other commissions revealed deep structural failures in the NPA, PIC, and judiciary. But despite damning findings, many implicated individuals remain untouched and the promised reforms are nowhere to be seen.
- The TRC itself — the moral foundation of South Africa’s democratic transition — made clear recommendations: prosecute apartheid-era criminals who were denied or never sought amnesty, pay reparations, and reform state institutions. Three decades later, these have been ignored or shelved.
One of the most disappointing aspects of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s leadership has been his chronic indecision and failure to act on the findings of commissions of inquiry. Instead of bold, decisive leadership, we have seen the emergence of a presidency that rules through endless committees, task teams, panels, and commissions — many of which duplicate the functions of the Cabinet itself. We have lost count of how many committees have been appointed, how many chairpersons and advisors are paid from the public purse, and how little actually gets implemented.
Some concrete examples include:
- The Presidential Advisory Panel on Land Reform and Agriculture (2018) — tasked with work already assigned to the Inter-Ministerial Committee.
- The Presidential Economic Advisory Council (2019) — established alongside an already bloated Cabinet with an economic cluster.
- The Presidential Climate Commission (2020) — overlapping with existing environmental and energy departments.
- The National Conventional Arms Control Committee (2024) — a political structure with heavy ministerial representation.
- The Special Committee on the Putin Visit (2023) — formed to manage a single diplomatic engagement.
The result is a government with multiple centres of decision-making but no real capacity to implement anything. It is governance by delegation and deferral — not by leadership.
South Africa has spent billions over the past 31 years to uncover the truth — only for those truths to be buried under inaction. Instead of action, we are given delay. Instead of justice, we are given excuses.
This endless cycle of commissions without consequences has become a deliberate strategy of avoidance. It wastes public money, disrespects victims, and gives the illusion of accountability — all while protecting those responsible for state crimes and corruption.
At this rate, future governments will waste even more money on new commissions just to explain why the previous recommendations were never implemented.
South Africa does not suffer from a lack of truth. The truth has been told — again and again. What we suffer from is a lack of political will by a political elite that refuses to hold itself accountable.
We cannot escape the feeling that the Presidency may now be establishing a commission to find out why apartheid police assassin Eugene de Kock — the so-called Prime Evil — was not only pardoned, but provided a free house and protected, while his victims and their families roll in pain still waiting for justice. If this is the case, the President can simply appoint a judge to get those answers — not waste public money on another full commission of inquiry. Enough with the delay tactics.
SAFTU demands:
- Immediate implementation of all TRC recommendations, including prosecutions of apartheid criminals who never received or were denied amnesty.
- A full accounting by the NPA of all unresolved TRC-related cases.
- An end to this charade of appointing commissions to investigate government inaction.
- A national audit of all commissions and committees appointed since 1994: how much they cost, what they recommended, and what has been done.
We call on all progressive formations, justice organisations, and the people of South Africa to unite behind the call for real justice — not more commissions to cover up failure.
Justice delayed is justice denied. Justice buried under commissions is justice betrayed.
A Statement was issued on behalf of SAFTU by General Secretary Zwelinzima Vavi.
For more details, contact the National Spokesperson at:
Newton Masuku
066 168 2157
Newtonm@saftu.org.za
