The old saying, “Be careful what you wish for, you might get it,” came to mind this week as police raided the house of former Deputy President Jacob Zuma in search of incriminating evidence.

For it was the same Jacob Zuma who uttered the following words in an affidavit just two years ago: “The media speculation increased. It was impossible for me to defend myself. While the respondents did not hesitate to raid the premises of other persons for evidence and to summon persons to give information, no such investigatory tools were used directly against me. This, I have learnt, was on the grounds of ‘deference’ due to my position as deputy president.

“Such deference was clearly misplaced. The respondents are under a constitutional duty to act without fear, favour or prejudice.”

So the Scorpions were merely meeting Zuma’s exacting standards for fairness when they raided his house this week. No?

With acknowledgements to Hogarth and the Sunday Times.