SA in grip of much angst

Two items in Tuesday’s edition explain why there is much more anxiety now than in the Zupta years.

In the article, “New Deal a mirage unless president sells an enterprise-friendly strategy”, Ann Bernstein writes that it has become clear that SA is going nowhere while the ruling party blindly sticks to dated, failed statist policies that contradict its aim to reduce unemployment and poverty — while at the same time refusing to acknowledge the success or even existence of proven growth strategies.

An honest evaluation of how Colombia and Venezuela developed over the past decade could not be clearer — even to communist and/or fascist denialists.

Letter writer Nathan Cheiman opined on Tuesday that this is because many of our leaders are not too bright and hardly inspire confidence.

The gems we hear day after day are depressing, such as Ace Magashule saying, after the ANC removed Supra Mahumapelo as premier and provincial chairman because of the damage he caused, that “he is a disciplined member of the ANC” and will still be part of the provincial task team. Even when the ANC does the right thing, albeit for the wrong reason, it often manages to turn sense into nonsense.

Countries such as Peru and Colombia have survived long periods of corruption and criminality, but none can survive statist and populist policies or without an honest, capable leadership.

Sydney Kaye

Cape Town