David Mahlobo told the media these anti-corruption measures were necessary to deal with the trust deficit that has developed between the ANC and citizens, writes Mpumelelo Mkhabela.
A decade and a half after the ANC resolved to disband the Scorpions - a respected multi-disciplinary, anti-corruption agency - the governing party wants to make a U-turn.
There is a realisation that a policy blunder was made 15 years ago and the chickens have now come home to roost in their numbers, in the form of declining public confidence in the governing party.