Helen Zille – Daily Maverick

Posted on by

In this post-truth era, it is becoming increasingly difficult to distinguish real scandals from bogus ones. Spotting the difference has become more important than ever, given the ease with which scandals are created, escalated and sent into orbit through social media.

In the parasitic relationship between social and conventional media, fake news is often used to generate outrage, and fake outrage, in turn, to generate news. Things that should generate outrage often pass unnoticed.

Outrage manufacturing becomes particularly marked in the months before political parties hold elective conferences for new leadership. During this period, internal jockeying for positions includes candidates raking as much muck on their opponents as possible.

Healthy scepticism is, therefore, a useful attitude with which to approach the many revelations that make their way into the media as South Africas major political parties approach their congress season.

It is fascinating to watch the links between some politicians and those journalists who are prepared to provide a public platform for their schemes. A few journalists even become pro-active agents in a partys internal battles and vendettas.

It was in this frame of mind that I read an article in last weeks Sunday Times headlined: Contractors paid for DA MECs bash.

The opening paragraph read, Acting DA provincial leader Bonginkosi Madikizela is facing allegations of impropriety after a swanky birthday bash in his honour was apparently partially funded by construction companies that benefit from projects financed by his department.

Despite the inclusion of a denial from Mr Madikizela himself, who is the provincial Minister of Human Settlements, the overwhelming impression left by the headline and the article is that contractors funded a party for the political head of a department that awards contracts and tenders worth billions annually. If that were true, it would (at the very least) be improper. At worst, it would indicate corruption.

So confident was the journalist of the latter that he publicly predicted the unfolding scandal would end Madikizelas career.

Before long, the lines were buzzing. Journalists wanted comment. The party hierarchy advised me to take urgent and immediate action.

The next day, the story escalated with a breathless front-page headline in the Cape Times screaming: Madikizela birthday party sleaze, followed by an article dripping in insinuations.

Experience, lifes best teacher, cautioned me to proceed carefully, gather as many facts as possible, and speak to the individuals involved before determining a course of action or making a public statement.

I knew at least two things:

So if it turned out that there were contractors who thought they could buy favours by sponsoring the event, they would end up sorely disappointed.

Nevertheless, if there had been such an attempt, it would have been wrong and action would be required. It was obviously important to establish the facts.

My first discussion was with Bonginkosi himself. I told him I was going to investigate the issue in as much detail as possible, so that I could determine an appropriate course of action. He welcomed my approach. He told me the party had been organised as a surprise for him. He thought he was going out to a birthday dinner with a group of friends, only to walk into a room full of guests shouting surprise.

What he knew about the background was as follows: He has, for years, been part of a 20-strong network of friends who support each other, specifically in times of celebration and bereavement, helping to raise money for events ranging from parties to funerals. This group (loosely based on the traditional stokvel saving model) meets on a regular basis. When Bonginkosi was elected the DAs interim Western Cape leader, they wanted to throw a celebration party for him.

Bonginkosi vetoed the idea. He said it was not appropriate in the circumstances, and could potentially be interpreted as lauding it over other candidates. They accepted his reservations, and later hatched a plan to give him a surprise birthday party instead. It was a closely guarded secret. After the event, when he enquired who had paid for it, they told him that a fundraising subcommittee had called on people to make donations. He accepted their word and thought nothing further of it. This was normal in his friendship circle, he said.

He confirmed the newspapers claim that Ms Pumla Zantsi, a partner in a construction firm doing business with the province, had contributed a multilayered, multicoloured cake, worth R3,000. That was the only contractor involved as far as he was aware.

Bonginkosi told me that he and Pumla were part of the mutually supporting friendship circle. They had been friends for 20 years, from the time they were both activists in Khayelitsha and long before he had even thought of joining the DA. For her part, Pumla had been a contractor to the province long before Bonginkosi became provincial Minister of Human Settlements. She had never used her presence in their stokvel network to seek a business advantage or political favour.

In any event, said Bongikosi, do you think that I can be bought for a birthday cake?

I thought about our conversation. A long-standing friend buys you (an admittedly expensive) cake, from her own pocket, and it turns into a scandal because her company does work for the province, and has done for years prior to your arrival on the scene? This put a completely different spin on a story that had been touted as a career-ending scandal.

But of course, there could conceivably be more to the story than that, so I investigated further. A party at the One & Only hotel does not come cheap. I started by making contact with Pumla Zantsi. She immediately agreed to meet and was entirely forthcoming. She explained that the group of friends had met over many weeks to organise the party. They had nominated a fund-raising committee who had approached prospective donors. She gave me the full donor list, ranging from people who had contributed to the incidentals (such as tea and coffee at their planning meetings) to those who had paid for the big ticket items such as the hotels bar tab. I then submitted the donors names (and the companies with which they are associated) to the Chief Financial Officer of the Department of Human Settlements, to determine if any of them are contractors to the Department or the Province. None, he responded.

I managed to get the telephone number of the major donor, a Mr G, who is based in Durban, where Bonginkosis sisters live, and where he once lived himself. He still has a large friendship network there. Mr G confirmed that he had covered the lions share of the cost, and that he has no business interests in the Western Cape and none in construction, and that he had elicited further donations from his network in Durban. None did work for the Western Cape either, he assured me.

Next, I had to check whether the people who said they were donors were the ones that actually paid for the party, so I contacted the relevant hotel manager and asked to see copies of the invoices and receipts. He was unable to give them to me, due to client confidentiality, so I asked the party organisers to source the documents for me.

They promptly did, and my office undertook a reconciliation which showed the accuracy of the information we had been given.

Next I scoured some of the photographs from the party and, with the help of the Department of Human Settlements, identified two contractors who attended as guests: Mr M and Mr P. Neither had been on the donor list, but I called them nevertheless to find out whether they had been asked to contribute, and whether they had done so. I wasnt asked for a cent and I didnt pay a cent, replied Mr M. He had been invited to the party because he had known Bonginkosi through political circles from the time he was still a member of the ANC.

Mr P
told a similar story. He was a subcontractor to Mr M, who had phoned during the festivities to encourage him to pop into the party. Mr P did.

By then, I had followed all the leads open to me. And I am confident that, on the information available, there is no more to the story than that. Meanwhile, the impression has been indelibly created in the minds of the newspaper-reading public that the minister has been involved in shady dealings involving contractors to his department paying for a lavish birthday party. The ineluctable deduction is that he is corrupt.

The ANC has reported the allegations to the Public Protector who has powers to probe the matter even more deeply than I did. I will pass on everything I have to assist her. And if anything further emerges, I will study it very carefully.

The one question I have not answered to my satisfaction is where, from inside the DA, this allegation came from in the first place. The newspaper has kept its sources anonymous. I have said it before and I say so again: when it is established that informants have leaked fake news to the media, they (and their motives) should become the focus of the story, because they have not acted in the public interest, only in their own.

It is time that this becomes standard practice in the media. Too much damage is done by anonymous sources spreading fake news, aided and abetted by journalists who know, if they are honest, that their revelations have nothing to do with speaking truth to power. DM

Read more:
Helen Zille - Daily Maverick

Saturday Comic-Con Schedule: TVD, True Blood and More!

Posted on by

Here we go again.

On the heels of Comic-Con releasing its full THURSDAY SCHEDULE and FRIDAY SCHEDULE, television fans are now scrambling to organize their afternoons on Saturday, July 20, as that date will feature the following panel discussions...

Comic-Con TVF Logo

Bates Motel: 10:00am - 11:00am, Room 6A
Attending: Producers Carlton Cuse and Kerry Ehrin; stars Vera Farmiga (Norma Bates), Freddie Highmore (Norman Bates), Max Thieriot (Dylan), Olivia Cooke (Emma), and Nestor Carbonell (Sheriff Alex Romero).

Once Upon a Time in Wonderland: 10:15am - 11:00am, Ballroom 20
Attending:  Co-creators and executive producers Edward Kitsis (Lost and Tron: Legacy) and Adam Horowitz.

Futurama: 12:00pm - 12:45pm, Ballroom 20
Attending: Billy West, John DiMaggio, Katey Sagal, Maurice LaMarche, Tress MacNeille, David Herman, Phil LaMarr and Lauren Tom.

How I Met Your Mother: 12:00pm - 1:00pm, Indigo Ballroom
Attending: Producers Carter Bays, Craig Thomas, and Pamela Fryman; stars Josh Radnor, Jason Segel, Cobie Smulders, Neil Patrick Harris and Alyson Hannigan.

The Simpsons: 12:45pm - 1:30pm, Ballroom 20
Attending: Creator Matt Groening, executive producer Al Jean, supervising director Mike Anderson and consulting producer David Silverman.

The Originals: 1:00pm - 2:00pm, Indigo Ballroom
Atending: Producer Julie Plec; stars Joseph Morgan, Daniel Gillies, Claire Holt, Phoebe Tonkin and Charles Michael Davis.

Family Guy: 1:45pm - 2:30pm, Ballroom 20
Attending: Seth Green, Alex Borstein and executive producer Rich Appel.

American Dad: 2:30pm - 3:15pm, Ballroom 20
Attending: Wendy Schaal, Rachael MacFarlane, Scott Grimes, Dee Bradley Baker.

Grimm: 2:40pm - 3:50pm, Room 6BCF
Attending: David Giuntoli, Russell Hornsby, Bitsie Tulloch, Silas Weir Mitchell, Reggie Lee, Sasha Roiz, Bree Turner, Claire Coffee; executive producers/writers Jim Kouf, David Greenwalt, Todd Milliner and Norberto Barba.

True Blood: 3:30pm - 4:15pm, Ballroom 20
Attending: Producers and cast members.

Person of Interest: 4:00pm - 4:45pm, Room 6BCF
Attending: Executive producers Jonathan Nolan and Greg Plageman; various cast members.

Being Human: 4:00pm - 5:00pm, Indigo Ballroo
Attending: Cast members Sam Witwer, Meaghan Rath, Sam Huntington, Kristen Hager; and executive producer Anna Fricke.

The Vampire Diaries: 4:30pm - 5:15pm, Ballroom 20
Attending: Nina Dobrev, Paul Wesley, Ian Somerhalder, Candice Accola and Kat Graham; executive producers/writers Julie Plec and Caroline Dries.

Revolution: 4:50pm - 5:50pm, Room 6BCF
Attending: Stars and producers.

Warehouse 13: 5:00pm - 6:00pm, Indigo Ballroom
Attending: Stars Eddie McClintock, Joanne Kelly, Saul Rubinek, Allison Scagliotti; producer Jack Kenny.

Arrow: 5:15pm - 6:00pm, Ballroom 20
Attending: Stars Stephen Amell, Katie Cassidy, David Ramsey, Emily Bett Rickards and Colton Haynes; executive producers Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim and Andrew Kreisberg.

The Tomorrow People: 5:55pm - 6:55pm, Room 6BCF
Attending: Stars Robbie Amell, Peyton List and Mark Pellegrino; executive producers Greg Berlanti, Phil Klemmer and Danny Cannon.

Source:
http://www.tvfanatic.com/2013/07/saturday-comic-con-schedule-tvd-true-blood-and-more/

Comic-Con Friday Schedule: Revealed!

Posted on by

With the Thursday schedule having already gone live, Comic-Con has now come out with the official television calendar for Friday, July 19.

Scroll down for a look at which shows and which stars will be featured in panel discussions with fans on the second full day of pop culture's craziest, most popular festival in San Diego...

Comic Con Photo

Defiance: 10:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m., Room 6A
Attending: Grant Bowler, Julie Benz, Jaime Murray and other cast members.

Veronica Mars: 11:15 a.m. - noon, Hall H
Attending: Creator Rob Thomas; Kristen Bell, Francis Capra, Enrico Colantoni, Percy Daggs III, Jason Dohring, Ryan Hansen, Chris Lowell, Tina Majorino and Krysten Ritter.

Nikita: 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m., 6BCF
Attending: Producers and cast members.

Helix: 11:45 a.m. - 12:45 p.m., Room 6A
Attending: Producer Ronald D. Moore and others.

The Venture Bros.: 12:15-1, Indigo Ballroom
Attending: Creators Jackson Publick and Doc Hammer; star Patrick Warburton.

Bones: 12:30-1:30, Ballroom 20
Attending: Producers Hart Hanson and Stephen Nathan; star David Boreanaz.

The Walking Dead: 1:35-2:30, Hall H
Attending: Stars Andrew Lincoln, Norman Reedus, Steven Yeun, Lauren Cohan, Danai Gurira, David Morrissey, Scott Wilson, and Chad Coleman join executive producer and showrunner Scott Gimple, executive producer Robert Kirkman, executive producer Gale Anne Hurd, executive producer Dave Alpert.

Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 1:45-3:00, Ballroom 20
Attending: Jeph Loeb (Marvel’s head of television), Joss Whedon and surprise guests.

Game of Thrones: 2:50-3:45, Hall H
Attending: David Benioff and D. B. Weiss; stars John Bradley, Emilia Clark, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Peter Dinklage, Michelle Fairley, Kit Harington, Rose Leslie and Richard Madden.

Haven: 3:00-4:00, Room 6DE
Attending: Producers and stars Emily Rose, Lucas Bryant, Eric Balfour and Adam Copeland and Colin Ferguson.

The Following: 3:15-4:00, Ballroom 20
Attending: Kevin Bacon, Shawn Ashmore and Valorie Curry, along with producers Kevin Williamson and executive producer Marcos Siega.

Sleepy Hollow: 3:30-4:30, Room 6A
Attending: Producers Alex Kurtzman, Len Wiseman and Roberto Orci; stars Tom Mison and Nicole Beharie.

Almost Human: 4:00-5:00, Ballroom 20
Attending: Producer J. H. Wyman and various cast members.

Falling Skies: 4:30-5:30, Room 6BCF
Attending: Stars Noah Wyle, Moon Bloodgood, Will Patton, Drew Roy, Collin Cunningham, Sarah Carter, Conner Jessup and Doug Jones; producers Remi Aubuchon and Greg Beeman.

Archer, 5;:00-6:00, Indigo Ballroom
Attending: Producers Adam Reed and Matt Thompson; stars H. Jon Benjamin, Aisha Tyler, Chris Parnell, Judy Gree, Amber Nash, and Lucky Yates.

Orphan Black: 7:00-8:00, Room 7AB
Attending: Stars Tatiana Maslany, Jordan Gavaris, Dylan Bruce; co-creators Graeme Manson and John Fawcett.

Source:
http://www.tvfanatic.com/2013/07/comic-con-friday-schedule-revealed/

Teen Wolf Spoilers: Midseason Finale, Scott/Stiles Scoop

Posted on by

Let's face it: Derek is probably not dead.

Despite what Teen Wolf viewers witnessed on "Frayed," it's safe to assume this key character will pull through. But try telling that to Scott.

Tyler Posey says that this Monday's new episode of the MTV hit is his favorite of the season, largely because it will focus on his character's reaction to Derek passing.

“It shows a side of Scott you’ve never seen before and it was a lot of fun to play and very emotional and everyone on set was crying,” Posey said to EW, adding that viewers ought to prepare some "tissues" and previewing:

"Stiles steps up and becomes the man and shows Scott the right way to go.”

Scott and Stiles in Hiding

As for the midseason finale of Teen Wolf Season 3? Which will air in August before the series returns this fall for 12 more episodes?

“It’s going to be the biggest thing in Teen Wolf history so far,” Posey teases. “And Scott is going to finally show why he’s the lead of the show.”

Source:
http://www.tvfanatic.com/2013/07/teen-wolf-spoilers-midseason-finale-scottstiles-scoop/