The acceptance of the recommendations of a commission by the government is no guarantee of their implementation. For example, the Farlam Commission's call for the urgent demilitarisation of the police has been ignored by the executive.

Large swathes of Daily Maverick's column space have historically been devoted to discussing the ins and outs of the activities of commissions of inquiry. A historical reference highlighting the Zondo, Farlam, Seriti and Margo commissions, in which the law around commissions is also summarised, is in the Daily Maverick archives.

The most recent example of this genre of commentary is that of Stephen Grootes in the Daily Maverick of 6 October 2025.

The Madlanga Commission is certainly pregnant with possibilities, assuming that the witnesses it has lined up survive to give their evidence. Traditionally, commissions of inquiry exist as an instrument of the executive branch of government, where it is possible to park a political hot potato until it cools sufficiently to be of no further interest to the public.

The acceptance of the recommendations of a commission by the government is no guarantee of their implementation. The Farlam Commission's call, echoing that of the National Development Plan for the urgent demilitarisation of the police, has been ignored by the executive, as has reform of public order policing, a feature cruelly and fatally exposed at the time of the pro-Zuma July 2021 riots.

Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga is an experienced...