Borders should assist SA trade

Page 4 of your last Saturday Citizen edition makes interesting reading. As for “Terror financing risk of NPOs in SA assessed as medium” that’s like someone saying “well done” for getting C- at school.

SA has a reputation as a sunny place with a lot of shady people, the shadiest being the government, and with our porous borders and sophisticated banks, we must be an easy touch for smugglers and terrorists alike. But as long as the boys in the band get their cut, who cares?

Fortunately, we haven’t seen Islamic fundamentalism here but, lest we forget, Cabo Delgado, Mozambique, where a major attack occurred in March 2021, is not far away. It’s time for the authorities to get serious. But will they?

Your second headline states “SA on tenterhooks over Iran”. Are we, and if so, why?

If it wasn’t for the case brought against Israel at the ICJ, I don’t think either belligerent could point us out on a map. Your contributors warn about trade and the price of oil.

I would argue that we should concentrate on being able to feed ourselves and to supply water and electricity to all.

That would be a good start. More of our trade should occur within the SADC region where our exports are needed. Borders should assist trade, not deter it by being cash cows for the greedy and short-sighted.

It’s all doable with a little imagination. Then the rest of the world can blow itself up at its leisure. Ben