David "The Cat" Mabuza at first refuses to be sworn in as MP; the Nkandla man refuses to attend the presidential inauguration but dispatches his junior wife Bongi Ngema-Zuma to attend, public protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane crosses swords with Pravin Gordhan, national director of public prosecutions Shamila Batohi calls the NPA a mess and Malusi Gigaba and Nomvula Mokonyane decline to serve as MPs, seemingly set to be reassigned to the ANC’s headquarters at Luthuli House. Phew! The litany of challenges facing President Cyril Ramaphosa seems endless.
On the face of it, there is nothing wrong with experienced politicians of stature going to headquarters. The highly divided governing party needs some fixing. It will take experienced leaders to do the job.
But Luthuli House abounds with people who are hostile to Ramaphosa. They include secretary-general Ace Magashule, his deputy, Jessie Duarte, Pule Mabe, Dakota Legoete and Carl Niehaus — Zuma loyalists, all of them.
Right up to the day of the recent elections Magashule refused to acknowledge that it had taken Ramaphosa’s persona, leadership style and extraordinary work to bring a modicum of stability to the ANC during the campaign.
It was this hard work that allowed the party to perform unexpectedly well at the polls.
Remember also that it was at Luthuli House that the putsch against former president Thabo Mbeki was cooked.
Which is to say that Ramaphosa will have to tread carefully. Wherever he turns, there are foes with knives poised.
Makes one scared. It’s the kind of fear that also makes one hungry and thirsty. Fortunately, at the time of writing this I was still in Franschhoek, at a literary festival.
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So I treated myself to a special dinner at a special place, called Le Petit Manoir. After my shock at the small portions at another establishment in this dorpie, I reminded myself I was not in Joburg. This is a playground for the rich and famous, not for lowly writers.
Thus mentally prepared, I was not too shocked that a salmon mousse with buchu "veil" (as starter) was R115. Salmon being my favourite fish, I was disappointed by the mousse — a bit thin; watery almost.
At my table we were a raucous crowd of writers and people from the publishing industry. So I had no way of tracking who was eating what. But generally, all seemed happy with their main course. I had seared duck breast. Delicious, with parsnip purée, confit parsnip, orange foam, parsnip crisps, duck and orange jus (R220).
Naturally, we sampled numerous wines as we dined and argued and laughed. There was no way I was going to stay abreast of the wine being consumed. Not when I was not going to be driving afterwards.
The taste of the food lingered long after the experience. Which says a lot about the chef’s skill.
Typical of Franschhoek restaurants, the ambience was to die for. You can tell the establishment is used to serving big groups of super-rich tourists from around the world. No corner-cutting. We were well taken care of. Only a foolish proprietor would mistreat writers from all over the world. They are a vocal lot and have hordes of fans who hang onto their every comment on social media.
Next time you’re in the Western Cape, pay this place a visit.
Booking is essential.
Le Petit Manoir *****
54 Huguenot Road, Franschhoek
Tel: 021-876-2110
Shamila Batohi *****
Saray Khumalo ****
Helen Zille ***
David Mabuza **
Jacob Zuma *
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