Like someone in an English novel, I had luncheon on Tuesday with two learned friends. One is a professor of politics and newspaper columnist; the other a former political journalist; and I of course am a veteran gadfly.
Two of us know Satyandranath Ragunanan "Mac" Maharaj, President Jacob G Zuma's new spokesperson, or the "new presidential spokesperson" if you prefer, pretty well. And we three agreed that there was something odd about the sudden and unexpected appointment of Maharaj and the dis-appointment of Zizi Kodwa.
We three had read the various articles that had come out in various newspapers by various political reporters or analysts.
The collective view seemed to be that Kodwa, a pleasant and generally helpful fellow, in contrast to most other ministerial spokespeople, had been shifted sideways because of his perceived "connection" with the young filibusterers from the ANC Youth League, and that Maharaj had been "instructed" to become the boss's spokesperson.
One of my luncheon companions, the former journalist, warmed to this theme and said unhappiness with Kodwa stretched back to the ANC's national general council in September last year. Allegedly, Kodwa had told the youngsters to chill and that all would be well.
But then, as you recall, Zuma publicly admonished Julius Malema, the YL president, and everyone was unhappy. And Malema continued his onslaught against Zuma and recently - so I was told - the president's right-hand (wo)man, Lakela Kaunda, the director-general of the president's office, decided it was time to cut off Kodwa's oxygen supply once and for all.
The other point made by the well-connected former political journalist was that the consensus, even among Zuma supporters, is that the "old man" is in trouble because he has no support blocs at the moment.
The ANC is in disarray, with the YL putting its support behind Kgalema Motlanthe (who is however apparently not keen on being played on the bench all the time) - and the young ‘uns also not overly keen on Gwede Mantashe. The SACP is also allegedly splitting all over the place, like a pair of jeans you wore when you were 16 and have just tried to put on again. And the membership of Cosatu - you saw how they behaved at their recent congress towards Zuma - well, they're also not so keen on the present incumbent of the Union Buildings.
This Byzantine explanation was all very well, but what I wondered is: Why Mac? This "struggle veteran" is the genuine article, the real MacCoy, you might say: a real hero of the struggle, as opposed to the various pale facsimiles we have running around these days. But he's also a real veteran - 76 years' old.
More importantly, Maharaj is given to speaking his mind. Actually, he loves speaking his mind and he does so at length.
Give him half a chance, give him a quarter of a chance, and you'll be listening to a learned disquisition on Vo Nguyen Giap's tactics against the malungu Yankee oppressors. Mac is in fact one of the most skilled red herring operators in the business. Actually he's more of a sardine shoal operator; get swept away by his rhetoric and you might never make it back to the beach.
But he's not given to small talk; Mac likes upmarket red herrings or sardines. How in heaven's name will he handle a new presidential engagement, marriage or birth, or - for example - the discovery that Gupta journalists have been hacking into people's cell phones? (This is merely a fictional example, okay?)
So we (eating lunch) all agreed that Maharaj, formerly a special advisor on such matters as Zimbabwe and the Middle East, had probably spoken to Zuma himself.
Our creative juices flowing, we suggested to one another that Mac had gone to Gedleyihlekisa and pointed out that it was high time that key positions were returned to serious players such as him. This was vital, he would have said, if certain important matters - such as, say, Zuma's role in Libya - were to be properly communicated to the world.
Yessir, some grizzled, vaguely literate, wise heads were required; no more laaitjies - we imagined him saying to the boss.
Okay, so last night, I put these views to Mac. "What do you need this aggravation for?" I kicked off with.
"The president of the republic asks me to be his spokesman, what am I going to do?" was his neat counter.
"And, c'mon," he continued, "do you think I went to the president and suggested that the man to save him was little old me? Get a life, Jeremy. I'm at a stage when I want to wind down my activities.
"The president and I connect on the level of the ANC - we both believe that the movement is the right way to deliver to the country and the continent. That's our connection."
What was happening, said Mac, is that it had become clear that the media in this fair land were given the president a bit of a hard time. "You know as well as I that he's fantastic at one-on-ones and he's brilliant in isiZulu. But press conferences aren't his bag," said Mac.
So Mac was coming in as a buffer and a filter. But, he stressed, he was going to deal only with important matters. The run-of-the-mill stuff, as Mac put it, Zuma's love life and such, would be handled by others in the presidency.
Maharaj conceded that "there is little doubt that the ANC is going through a very difficult period and it is time for all shoulders to the wheel." He also agreed with me, though he wouldn't use the "e" word, that the government so sluggish and inert that on the whole it was in dire need of an enema.
Then Maharaj skillfully switched the conversation to a short lecture on the remarkable revolution taking place in North Africa and the Middle East.
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