As 2025 ended, ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula thought it necessary to show the world that he is in tune with the trends that have made certain former US presidents very popular. He published his top 10 songs and artists of the year.
They were all far too modern for Hogarth to have heard of any of them. But Hogarth did love the response from one X user, who dubbed Mbalula the Barack Obama of the Free State.
War and peace and soccer
It has been a weird festive season, what with all the soccer that was played, even on New Year’s Eve. And it wasn’t the English Premier League but the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) — the kind of tournament that is often played in June-July. Patrice Motsepe has really shaken things up since he took over as president of the Confederation of African Football, the governing body for the continent. Afcon is now so high profile that several world stars abandoned their holiday plans and headed to host nation Morocco to take part. Impressive.
One notable absentee from the tournament so far, however, has been Fifa president Gianni Infantino, who, just two years ago, could hardly keep away from Motsepe.
But perhaps the man who recently gave a “Fifa peace prize” to the warmonger Donald Trump, who this weekend bombed Venezuela and kidnapped its president, decided it was a good time to hide his face from the world.
Supping with the devil
Speaking of the Orange One, he had lunch with Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky the other day. Several US journalists were present. Before tucking in to his own food, Trump told the media workers: “I think you can sit outside and have some food. Would you like to have some food, or do you consider that a bribe and therefore you cannot write honestly? Would you like something to eat at this time, yes or no? You can speak.”
To which one journalist is heard saying, “Yes sir, thank you sir.”
“Margo,” Trump said to White House press assistant Margo Martin, “take them outside and tell the chef to serve them a little lunch.”
As the fourth estate was being ushered out, Trump commented: “That should generate a few good stories, but it won’t. They’ll only get worse.”
Hogarth was disappointed to learn that Trump’s contempt did not spoil the reporters’ appetities and they stayed for lunch. South African hacks would have headed for the nearest chesa nyama with their dignity intact.
Blue-light escort to fame
KwaZulu-Natal premier Thami Ntuli ended 2025 with a hard-fought victory over Jacob Zuma’s MK Party, which tried to remove him from office through a vote of no confidence. But his foes have vowed to try again, so it seems the IFP premier is preparing for the next attempt by trying to surround himself with the right kind of associates.
The other day he was seen driving up and down the Durban beachfront in a police vehicle driven by KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Lt-Gen Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi, whose bombshell accusations in July sparked the Madlanga commission.
He must be hoping that Mkhwanazi’s popularity will rub off on him.
Blue-light escort to jail
Meanwhile the ANC’s Siboniso Duma, who might have been expecting to become KwaZulu-Natal premier up until May 24 2024 — when pro-Zuma voters reduced the ANC to also-rans in the province — seems to be enjoying his role as transport MEC.
It used to be transport & community safety, but when he became premier Ntuli took the community safety part for himself. Nonetheless Duma has somehow found a way to use the transport portfolio to promote himself as a no-nonsense crime buster.
This festive season, his office has gone out of its way to publicise every arrest made by provincial traffic police as they cracked down on lawbreakers. Last week it reported the arrest of “a service provider with billions worth of state tenders from Gauteng” who was arrested for drunk driving, reckless driving and trying to flee from officers.
Visiting tenderpreneurs fresh from downing a bottle of Johnnie Walker Blue to celebrate another lucrative contract should take heed, and stick to e-hailing services.
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