Introduction
One Friday evening in mid- 2013 my cellphone rang just as I was about
to put a few takeaway pizzas in my car. I had been working at a
Sunday newspaper in Johannesburg and it was not unusual to get
work-related calls over the weekend. Not recognising the number
flashing on my phone’s screen, I hesitated. It had been a long week and
I was looking forward to enjoying hot pizza and a few beers with
friends. But curious journalists rarely ignore phone calls, so I
answered. The person on the other end of the line introduced himself
as Ace Magashule, the premier of the Free State.
My first thought was that someone was playing a prank on me, but I
soon realised it was indeed him. At the time, I was researching a tender
awarded to a Bloemfontein-based company for organising the annual
South African Sport Awards. The company’s owner was said to be
closely connected to top government leaders and had apparently
clinched the contract in an irregular manner. While Magashule and his
provincial government did not feature in the story,^1 I may have sent out
queries to officials regarding the company’s work in the Free State.
Magashule had somehow got word of my interest in the contractor and
had decided to give me a call. I don’t recall verbatim what was said,
but he tried to convince me that his administration and the company in
question had nothing to hide.
The call was strange, to say the least. Top-level government leaders do
not normally contact young, relatively unknown journalists, at least not
directly. I got the sense that Magashule was worried about what I
might uncover. I also think he wanted me to know that he was aware