Over the years, parliament’s ethics committee has never proudly established itself as a crusader for ethical behaviour among MPs. More often than not, it has acted with laxity and lenience when serious ethical breaches have been brought to its attention.

Twice this week this assertion was proven true. First the committee’s bizarre inability to make a finding against EFF leader Julius Malema in the VBS matter suggests its incapability or unwillingness to follow evidence already in the public domain. Second, its recommended sanction to dock nine days salary from EFF MP Floyd Shivambu for his failure to declare money here ceived, ultimately from the VBS, demonstrated its lack of commitment to ensuring proper accountability on members of the house...