JABULANI SIKHAKHANE: Public protector personality cult weakens institution
Department’s strength and health matters more in long run than who is at its helm
South Africans will over the next few months ride yet another wave of excitement and debate about who should be the next public protector. The advertisement for the post closed last Friday, after which parliament will make recommendations to the president who appoints the public protector and the deputy.
This obsession with the individual — the cult of personality — is dangerous because it comes at the expense of the institution. Yet, in the long run it is the strength and health of the institution that matters more than who sits at its helm. Strong institutions tend to survive bad leaders relatively better than weak ones...
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