A frisson of excited anticipation is abroad in the land. Time will tell what the records reveal and their extent. The excuse that 'the dog ate my homework' does not appear to be available.

Our highest court has decided that the interests of justice are served by closing its doors on the efforts of the ANC to keep confidential its cadre deployment decision-making records for the period during which then deputy president Cyril Ramaphosa chaired the Luthuli House-based national cadre deployment committee of the ANC.

The ANC has five days, calculated from Monday 12 February, to disgorge the records of all kinds to the DA.

Its chairperson, Gwede Mantashe, has told Parliament that this will be done - but its president, Cyril Ramaphosa, has told the Zondo Commission on oath that no minutes were kept when the committee met under his chairpersonship.

There is, however - contradictorily so - explicit reference to such minutes in the minutes of the first meeting chaired by his successor as chair, former deputy president DD Mabuza.

A frisson of excited anticipation is abroad in the land. Time will tell what the records reveal and their extent. The excuse that "the dog ate my homework" does not appear to be available.

Take for example the exchange in the Sona debate reported as follows in the Mail & Guardian:

"In a direct attack on Ramaphosa, he [leader of the...