SOUTH AFRICA - TWENTY YEARS LATER

SOUTH AFRICA

TWENTY YEARS LATER

Stes de Necker

When the people of South Africa met on the 25th and 26th June 1955 in Kliptown near Johannesburg, the Congress of the People was convened and this meeting represented a historical moment in the establishment of a new order in South Africa, based on freedom, democracy and the will of the people. It brought together 2,844 delegates from all over the country. At this meeting, ‘The Freedom Charter’ (for a democratic South Africa), which embodied the hopes and aspirations of the majority of the people of South Africa, was adopted. The Charter proclaimed that ''South Africa belongs to all who live in it" and that "all shall be equal before the law" and It pledged to continue the struggle until a new democratic order was put into place.

The new order became reality when the ANC win the election in 1994 and took over the government of South Africa.

2014 marks the 20^th anniversary of the ANC ruled Government and the question can be asked, and rightfully so, ‘What became of the noble aspirations adopted by the people of South Africa in 1995?’

During the past two decades, many foreign visitors who visited South Africa before are currently avoiding coming to South Africa; Several foreign investors who a decade ago was excited to invest in South Africa, are now taking their investments elsewhere; peaceful marches and protests turn violent in the space of minutes and normally lead to bloodshed and mayhem.

In the 20 years since the end of white minority rule, South Africa has rarely looked so unattractive.

Mining and Agriculture are in crisis as costs rise and commodity prices fail to cover the costs of production. Strikes and demonstrations are spreading across the mining industry and into other sectors.

Companies are losing production, and the recognized unions, with which business was able to barter in the past, have lost influence over the labour force.

Equally worrying is the political atmosphere which is not only highly charged but becoming increasingly poisonous. Opportunists such as Julius Malema, the disgraced former youth leader of the African National Congress, is now sitting in Parliament where he is not only busy exploiting the leadership vacuum, but is making a mockery of the proud South African Parliamentary tradition.

Black Economic Empowerment, affirmative action, nationalization and land reform, are still the greatest evils of the ANC culture and are effectively being manipulated by the Malema’s sitting in Parliament to further their own political aspirations and ideals.

South Africa is fast becoming a comedian's paradise. One after the other comic error is denting South Africa’s image locally and abroad.

The Nkandla debacle, the Malema circus, the bumbling Land Audit conducted by the Department of Land Affairs, a prejudiced Justice system and fraud and corruption uncovered almost daily in just about every State Department, are all fuelling the negative sentiments towards South Africa all over the world.

Remarkably, South Africa in terms of income distribution and wealth, has become even more unequal since 1994. What is needed to address this problem is much more than a debate about land tenure.

A culture of self-enrichment of the privileged loyalists in the ANC has taken root in all levels of Government. It is a culture of, ‘get as rich as possible, as soon as possible.’  It is a culture that embraces a variety of ills, most of which are aimed at the erosion of our constitutional democracy and the maintenance of the unscrupulous and incompetent politicians in their panelled offices and luxurious limousines.

The government's controversial tender system provides the opportunity for every friend and family member of the ruling elite to secure lucrative contracts, the vast majority of which are never implemented, or alternatively it is so half executed that the work or service have to redone in any case.  

And for those who do not have nepotistic connections with the ruling elite, there is always the possibility of a lucrative position somewhere in the deployment of some ANC's cadre.

 

Corruption in all facets and levels of Government has certainly the best income to risk ratio anywhere in the world, as less than 5% of all corruption charges are successfully prosecuted in our courts.

The immediate conundrum is not an easy one. Miners are already South Africa’s best-paid workers, but by comparison with the ruling black elite they are paupers. It may be possible for the government and industry to win some breathing space again by buying them, and workers in other industries, off. But this will only be a short term solution (and a small part at that) of the real problem. Further wage increases seems inevitable which will only mean that the mining industry will be become smaller and less competitive as a result.

Radical reforms to education, the labour market, business regulation and land ownership are needed to spur labour intensive sectors such as mining, manufacturing and agriculture.

Violence and the daily dose of comic errors by the political leadership are however symbolic of a bigger and deeper malaise. South Africa's problems are bigger than most South Africans think and as long as the group of privileged political elite remain in power, the more unlikely it will be that any significant improvement in the prevailing conditions will occur.

A complete restructuring of the whole socio-economic and socio-political environment is today certainly the biggest and most important challenge facing this country. 

 

South Africa’s economy has grown on average by 3.6 per cent over the past two decades. This pace of growth falls far short of what is needed to absorb the legions of currently unemployed people in South Africa.  

The necessary reforms will be painful, but deferring them will be even more painful. Far too long the ANC led Government, has deferred these tough decisions.

To quote the National Chairman of the Australian Protectionist Party, Andrew Phillips: “Despite noble announcements by the African National Congress (ANC) of its intent to make South Africa an egalitarian society in which all people could live in harmony and have equal opportunity, the reality is quite different. ... It is becoming increasingly clear the situation in South Africa warrants international attention once again"

The Western world was quick to take the moral high-ground against South Africa decades ago. Now is the time to expose their hypocrisy by refusing to exercise pressure and apply meaningful diplomatic pressure upon the ANC regime to bring about the long overdue changes so desperately needed in this country.  

South Africa’s Constitution is recognized throughout the world as one of the best constitutions in the world. Everybody involved was pleased and proud to have been a part of it. Two of our leaders were even awarded Nobel Peace Prizes.

But now it seems that most of our ANC leaders are uncomfortable with the Freedom Charter and the Constitution. They claim to live by the rule of law, but when the law isn’t on their side, they’re happy to bend, ignore, or even break it.

The ANC still claims that they want to reduce crime and corruption. That they want to improve the education and health systems. That they want to reduce unemployment and to provide homes for the homeless. But very little gets done about it!

In a previous article, “Suid-Afrika se krag in diversiteit”, I said that the only recipe for peace, prosperity and progress in this country, is the speedy return to the aspirations of the Freedom Charter and the adherence to the provisions of the Constitution. 

Its time that all South Africans once again unite around the noble ideals of the Freedom Charter.

The biggest evil in South Africa is that it is largely being driven by ignorance, bigotry and racism, instead of a mature, equitable vision for development and growth.