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ARTICLE: THE EMPLOYMENT EQUITY ACT (EEA) AMENDMENT BILL, 2020 AND DEMOGRAPHIC REPRESENTIVITY

2020-06-01

Apartheid illustrationFew people would disagree with the Employment Equity Act’s goals of “eliminating unfair discrimination in employment” and ensuring equitable access to the economy for all South Africans. We need an open, equitable and non-discriminatory economy.

However, in its pursuit of these goals the EEA has now become a core tool in the ANC’s project to reshape society and the economy according to demographic representivity (DR).  The ANC’s objective has long been to ensure that DR is achieved in the private sector to the same degree that it is already a reality in the public sector. As Rob Davis put it in 2012 “We need to make sure that in the country’s economy, control, ownership and leadership are reflective of the demographics of the society in the same way that the political space does.”

 

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ARTICLE: AN UNFETTERED LOCKDOWN WILL DRAG US FURTHER INTO AN ECONOMIC MORASS

2020-04-21

SA lockdownNo right-thinking South African doubted the necessity of the lock-down for the past three weeks. President Ramaphosa was widely lauded for his decisive and clear leadership. The majority of South Africans adhered to the regulations of the past three weeks, because we believed that the infection curve would flatten and that lives would be saved. Many excused the unintended consequences of police and defence over-reaction, and even understood that the curtailment of basic human rights may be necessary for the greater good. When our president announced a two-week extension of the lock-down, he was emphatic that some regulations would be relaxed in due course. Most of us understood the need for the extension, and we welcomed the prospect of the relaxation of the regulations to help the economy’s recovery.

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ARTICLE: IT’S STILL TOO EARLY TO SAY THAT IT’S GAME OVER FOR PRESIDENT RAMAPHOSA

2020-01-23

2020 opt

In a recent article, I wrote about five trends that will characterise 2020. These five are:

  • Greater centralisation and State control by the ANC government on the actions of South Africans;
  • Better investigations, charges and prosecutions by the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) and the Hawks.
  • The gradual but definite erosion of government institutions’ ability to govern, manage, maintain and provide basic services;
  • The ongoing infighting within the ANC and its alliance partners (and accompanying attacks on President Ramaphosa); and
  • The stagnant economy (with the possibility of a downgrade lurking).

In the past week, the focus of the media and citizens has specificially been on the infighting in the ANC (no. 4 above), which was influenced and even driven by Eskom’s problems (no. 3 above). 

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ARTICLE: FIVE TRENDS TO UNDERSTAND AND MANAGE 2020

2020-01-09

2020 opt

At the start of a new year, we all reflect on the year ahead, what we want to do, what we are excited about, and what we are afraid of. What about the country – politics, the economy and our social life? It is impossible to make predictions, but one can describe certain trends, which are accompanied by certain events and their possible consequences.

Broadly, there are five trends that emerged during 2019 that will significantly impact the political and socio-economic landscape in 2020 – and which can help one to understand and cope with the year.

The first is a growing trend of centralisation and state control (read ANC control) of various aspects of South African society. There are currently four pieces of draft legislation (most of which were recently published by the ANC-controlled Parliament before the December holidays) that have one thing in common: greater and/ or absolute control over important national issues, which do not necessarily need State control or that should not be controlled because it is in the private domain according to constitutional requirements. 

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ARTICLE: STAGE 6 LOAD-SHEDDING WAS THE LOW POINT OF CYRIL’S YEAR

2019-12-18

2019 is racing to a close and one can – without fear of contradiction – say that Eskom’s Stage 6 load-shedding was the low point of President Ramaphosa’s year. It was also clear when he delivered his statement after meeting with the Eskom Board and management. And speaking of poor timing: on Monday, December 9, he wrote in his weekly newsletter to the nation about the miracle of Medupi and how impressive and imposing it is… In addition, we all remember his assurance at the beginning of the year that load-shedding at Eskom was something of the past; a promise repeated only a few months ago by Deputy President David Mabuza. And of course, many also remember that when President Ramaphosa was still Deputy President, he was in charge of the task team responsible for repairing State-owned entities (SOEs).

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ARTICLE: INTERNATIONAL ANTI-CORRUPTION DAY: 9 DECEMBER

2019-12-09

IACD2019 logo

On 31 October 2003, the United Nations General Assembly decided to declare 9 December as International Anti-Corruption Day.  Its role would be “to raise awareness of corruption and of the role of the UN Convention against Corruption” that came into force in 2005. 

Article 6 of the Convention required States Party to ensure the existence of “a body or bodies to prevent corruption”.   Such bodies would be granted the necessary independence to enable them to carry out their functions effectively and free from any undue influence. They would also be provided with the “necessary material resources and specialised staff, as well as the training that such staff may require to carry out their functions.”

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ARTICLE: EWC OR ECONOMIC RECOVERY?

2019-11-08

The Ad Hoc Committee to Initiate and Introduce Legislation Amending Section 25 of the Constitution convened a “constitutional dialogue” in Cape Town on 6 November 2019 to which it invited members of the public and civil society organisations – including the FW de Klerk Foundation’s Centre for Constitutional Rights (CFCR).   

The Ad Hoc Committee was appointed by Parliament following a resolution by the National Assembly on 6 December 2018, “to initiate and introduce legislation amending section 25 of the Constitution”. The Ad Hoc Committee was tasked with making “explicit that which is implicit in the Constitution” regarding expropriation without compensation (EWC) and was required to finalise its work by 31 March 2020.  

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ARTICLE: CAN CYRIL AND TITO’S ECONOMIC KITE FLY?

2019-09-04

The Centre for Development and Enterprise (CDE) issued a report on 28 August entitled “Running out of Road: South Africa’s public finances and what is to be done”. They conclude that if South Africa does not overcome its fiscal crisis, there will be no accelerated economic growth. However, the opposite is also true: if we don’t start growing the economy, we will not be able to cope with the fiscal crisis. South Africa needs an uncompromising growth strategy, which must be applied strictly. CDE Chief Ann Bernstein warns that Government and the ruling party do not seem to fully realise how profound the changes are that are needed and how much leadership it will take from the President to get it right.

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