The executive’s handling of the entire Nkandla debacle has been poor from the start. But it arguably reached a new low last month when Police Minister Nathi Nhleko presented an entirely unbelievable spin on the nonsecurity components of the upgrade. The entire confidence-sapping scandal has not only served to further tarnish the image of President Jacob Zuma, but it has also seriously harmed the reputations of his Cabinet colleagues and the standing of the African National Congress as a whole.