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That is not because Meyer is some uniquely transformative figure. It is because he is a practical chap who arrives at a moment when the relationship with the United States matters greatly to South Africa and when a calmer, more considered approach could yield real benefits. After the fallout that followed the expulsion of Ebrahim Rasool in 2025, Pretoria has a chance to lower the temperature and move the relationship onto firmer ground.

That matters because Washington is not a peripheral relationship for South Africa. It is central, together with Europe and China, to the practical trade, investment, and wider strategic credibility South Africa needs to restore in order to secure an economic recovery.

And why is that an opportunity specifically for the ANC? Because it is the biggest loser when growth slows and jobs are not created. What the ANC has done with Meyer’s appointment (let us not pretend it consults its unity government peers on all key decisions) is, unusually for it, a move that appears practical rather than theatrical.

As Frans Cronje told this newspaper yesterday, "The appointment has a real prospect of resetting the relationship with America and securing first a trade deal and then a broader investment pact. The appointment may also be effective in offsetting any sanctions risk."

If Meyer can help reopen channels, restore a measure of trust, and create the conditions for stronger trade and investment ties, then he will have done a very good thing. That should not be hard because, at odds with what has been spouted in the legacy press, the Americans sorely desire trade and economic deals with South Africa, and Meyer will find a welcome reception.

If he succeeds, then of course all South Africans, and not just the ANC, benefit.

It is for this reason that The Common Sense finds itself in agreement with the Congress of South African Trade Unions this morning, after that trade union federation took the Afrikaner right to task earlier this week, in admittedly spirited phrasing (“far-right-wing cranks”, etc), for pooh-poohing Meyer’s appointment. Internal Afrikaner political wranglings and vendettas from almost four decades ago pale in importance beside the contemporary relationship between Pretoria and Washington.

But a capable envoy alone is not enough. The government will also need discipline, coherence, and a clearer sense of the national interest if this opening is to amount to anything.