Is SA’s new dawn already broken?
President Cyril Ramaphosa is entering the forthcoming general election as leader of a supposedly renewed and reformed ANC with the promise of a “new dawn” ahead of us ordinary citizens.
It remains to be seen how big an ANC faction he is leading because the ANC is by all accounts far from a united political party with a united will.
In his quest for a new dawn, the president has embarked on a major drive seeking foreign investment from all corners of the globe.
Gaining foreign investment to finance manufacturing facilities, mineral exploration and beneficiation, and even some infrastructure is vastly more advantageous to a country that finds itself over its head in debt than to borrow money from financial institutions who are very wary of our investment rating and the limited local investment.
There is apparently a large amount of funds held in SA hands which could easily become available for local investment, yet it is not, despite the investment campaign.
SA financiers know the unstable and even dangerous political environment engulfing the country and choose to wait and see a little longer.
I say “a little longer” because they will not hang on forever.
A fortune of funds has already moved offshore, and the balance is ready to go should things not change remarkably for the better after the election.
With all the will in the world, the president will not be able to reverse the harm done to the economy by 25 years of ANC government.
A party that relies on being kept in government by coalition with communists, labour unions, ex-freedom fighters and cadres, and relying on a predominately uneducated rural population can never lead a country to prosperity.
BEE laws and charters have been drafted under the banner of “transformation” that has hamstrung, if not killed established business entrepreneurship and have effectively barred business competition in the true sense of the word.
All these laws achieved, apart from creating a few very rich individuals, was to open the doors to procurement corruption on a grand scale.
The Zondo commission is slowly showing the extent and cost of corruption with those on the facilitating and receiving side being just about exclusively members of the ANC government.
Entrusted with the financially stressed taxpaying citizens’ money, they abdicated their constitutional duties, and robbed the unemployed of jobs and critically needed services to enrich themselves.
What is not being investigated is the true financial cost to the country of BEE.
Enforced BEE raises the cost of every service and commodity you can think of.
As a country, we can afford less and less infrastructure and services with the little money allocated in the budget for capital expenditure or the maintenance thereof.
On top of that, our build quality has deteriorated, shortening the economical lifespan of new infrastructure.
Another “spinoff” of BEE regulation has been the rapid demise of world class capabilities in mining and construction.
Every day we read of forced and voluntary liquidations of long-established entities and no one in government appears concerned.
Even government would, however, have to admit that current BEE capability falls far short of that required by foreign investors, let alone the exorbitant cost they would demand for their largely substandard services.
Our manufacturing industry is slowly grinding to a halt as a result of BEE, labour unproductivity and absurd labour union demands.
Violent and destructive strikes and marches are the order of the day with our police looking the other way.
Despite this, a few exports still leave our shores mainly due to an ever-weakening currency.
This may continue until existing machines retire and it requires replacement imports at unaffordable prices.
A weak currency does not draw investors unless there is potential for a good return, and our government and labour organisations do not accept “profit” as a necessity of business practice.
“Profit” to them means “exploitation”, something which is due to the workers.
Ramaphosa is but one man and one man cannot change the inevitable path of destiny the ANC embarked on 25 years ago.
Populism among the uneducated has ensured victory for the ANC at the polls.
The same populist rhetoric has implanted the mentality of entitlement among their supporters.
The “new dawn” seems to be disappearing fast.
Hennie Wepener
Walmer, Port Elizabeth