Insider simply cannot understand why Defence Minister Mosiuoa Lekota's admission that he failed to disclose certain business interests to Parliament has caused such a commotion now, when Business Day dropped an even smellier stinkbomb several months ago.

According to a report in the Mail & Guardian on Friday, Lekota has interests in both a fuel distribution company and a wine cellar in Free State, but has not disclosed this information to Parliament as is required under the law. For this little omission those mean opposition parties want his head on a platter.

Yet, when Business Day mentioned as an aside in a book review five months ago that Lekota, "who has a wine farm in the Free State", had been unable to attend the launch of John and Erica Platter's book, Africa Uncorked: Travels in Extreme Wine Territory, because he had to meet his British counterpart in Cape Town, there was not a murmur from the chattering classes.

A wine farm in Free State? So that's where the nickname "Terroir"came from.

With acknowledgements to The Insider and the Business Day.