By STEPHEN GROOTES.

So often in politics we subscribe to what historians used to call the ‘big man’ theory. We focus on the newsmakers, the decision makers, the symbols of the various parties. You could examine the national predilection for blaming everything – including bad April Fool’s Day jokes – on President Jacob Zuma, as proof of this. But often the real story is hidden in the shadow of the ‘big’ person that is being publicly discussed. The resignation of Patrick Craven as national spokesperson of Cosatu is just such an example. It shows exactly how much has changed in just one week, as part of the fallout from the break-up of Cosatu.

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