Malema and the tenderpreneurs

JOHANNESBURG - The past week has seen Julius Malema, the president of the African National Congress Youth League, identified as yet another ANC leader who has become an overnight millionaire, his vehement denials to the contrary notwithstanding.

While Malema has kicked up a veritable cloud of dust to obscure the issue, the fact remains that he has successfully exploited his political connectivity to the ANC generally, and the dominant Zuma faction within the ANC particularly, to win lucrative tenders from several municipalities in his home province of Limpopo.

While Malema has twisted and turned with impressive agility, he cannot deny that he is still listed as the director of four companies which were awarded tenders, according to the records Companies and Intellectual Property Registration Office (CIPRO).

His registered status as director of these companies contradicts his earlier assertion that he had severed all his connections with the companies after he was elected as ANC Youth president in April 2008.

His attempt to explain the contradiction between his continued connection with the companies by accusing the CIPRO of negligence or dilatory attendance to its duties is disingenuous, if not outright mendacity.

His presentation of himself as a victim of an alleged conspiracy within the South African Revenue Service (SARS) to identity him as a potential target for a lifestyle audit because of his loyalty to President Jacob Zuma is likewise an attempt to divert public attention from his newfound wealth.

Malema's purchase of a house in Sandown for R3.5-million on the basis of a bond worth R1.5-million, invites the deduction that he paid R2-million in cash which, by any measure, marks him out as a new member of the superrich black elite.

It is instructive to step back to take a broader view of the emergence of the new class of black millionaires, most of whom acquired their wealth as beneficiaries of black empowerment or as tenderpreneurs (to use a term coined by Blade Nzimande, general-secretary of the South African Communist Party).

One of the intriguing - and possibly politically significant - consequences of the emergence of the new class of super rich black moguls is to be found in tables reflecting the distribution of income in the four main racially identified communities in South Africa.

Whereas income inequality in the white community has narrowed since the ANC came to power, it has widened in the black, coloured and Indian communities, most significantly in the black community, according to tables published in the latest Institute of Race Relations annual survey of South Africa.

The Gini coefficient is widely used to measure inequality in communities around the world. It rates communities on a scale of naught to one, with naught representing complete equality and one representing absolute inequality.

The tables show that between 1996 and 2007 inequality in the black community increased from 0.54 to 0.62, meaning that the income gap widened by 14.27 %.

Smaller increases in income inequality are reflected in the scores for the coloured and Indian communities, though the increase in the coloured community is only marginally less than that in the black community (14.21 % against 14.27 %). The increase in inequality in the Indian community is markedly smaller than that in the black and coloured communities (6.51 % against more than 14 %).

In contrast to the increase in inequality in the black, coloured and Indian communities, inequality has diminished in the white community by 6.33 % over the same period.

The increasing inequality in the black community has potentially profound political implications, including the possibility of growing tension between rich and poor blacks and the spectre of intra-black class conflict.

Taken together, these figures represent a slow but steady shift of disposal income away from the white minority to the black majority, though it bears re-emphasising that the increased black share is unevenly spread.

There are already signs of class-based intra-black tension in the service delivery protests in a string of black townships within a 200km radius of Johannesburg. The affected townships include Siyathemba, near Balfour; Sakhile near Standerton and Sharpeville near Vereeniging. These protests have been marked by popular hostility towards the relatively privileged local municipal councillors, nearly all of whom are representatives of the ANC.

Former President Thabo Mbeki is reported to have emphasised the need for effective poverty alleviation programmes with a succinct warning. "When the poor rise, they rise against all of us," he is said to have warned when railing against what he termed the culture of materialism that is increasing replacing the ethos of service to the nation.

The implication of Mbeki's reported observation is that the fabulously rich black citizens will not be immunised against the anger of the black underclass, even if ignites into violence.

While mindful of Mbeki's warning and aware of the potential horrors of class conflict, as manifested by the mass murder of kulaks in the Soviet Union under Josef Stalin, a shift away from the present racially-based political divisions in South Africa might nevertheless lead, in the course of time, .to divisions based on ideology instead of race and/or class.

There is a need to guard against facile optimism, however, as the recent history of Zimbabwe shows.

With the advantage of hindsight, two positive developments can be discerned in the late 1990s in Zimbabwe:

Firstly, the threatened rebellion against President Robert Mugabe's regime by war veterans over the pillaging of the war veterans fund by avaricious members of Mugabe's inner circles; and

Secondly, the emerging coalition between white farmers and dissidents in the black community, including, of course, Morgan Tsvangirai and his comrades in the in the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions.

As South Africa knows only too well, Mugabe turned the situation around by playing the race card: he invited the war veterans to seize white-owned farms, thereby making white farmers the scapegoats of his failure to pursue a gradual and controlled land reform policy, while simultaneously casting the black dissidents as treacherous puppets of whites in Zimbabweans and Britain.

On a more hopeful note, it should be remembered that the white minority in South Africa is more numerous and more powerful than their racial counterparts in Zimbabwe and that the black community in South Africa is more diverse ethnically than the black majority in Zimbabwe.

In combination with South Africa's more advanced economy and the emerging class differences in the black community, these factors may facilitate a second reconciliation of forces* the first being the settlement agreement that led to the watershed 1994 election.

*The phrase was coined by Zach de Beer, a founding member of the Progressive Party and a leader of the Democratic Party in the late 198os and early 1990s

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Chains I dream that people like you and me, my fellow South Africans, start holding our leaders accountable and ensure that the excluded 90% get a fair shake. We must break the suffocating grip of the upper class, the 10%. I dream that we put aside our petty . .more differences, our narrow interests and stop serving our tribal masters. It really is up to us. . .less by Carl Wille on February 25 2010, 21:51 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

re: Unrest My summation: the redistribution of the wealth of this country is a key factor that sways people, however what of the idea of sewerage and drinking water? Is it not self-evident to South Africans that if a body of persons (constellated into a political . .more force controlling the mechanisms of state) have proved themselves inept at maintaining an already existing sewerage system, how can this same body of persons claim to be capable of governance of the lives of every individual within the society? When does this sagism constellate and make itself known to the 'governed' individuals of said society? Is there any real example from the African continent that could be used to demonstrate, illuminate, delineate distinctions so that persons not concerned about who's getting what from connectivity to the constellated force, may actually make summations about whether the future will be an experience following in the footprints of the pattern set by Zim and other African democracies? I, for one, will always love my native South Africa, but the question as to whether my native South Africa/n will love me, a white South African, is demonstrated, and proven by the examples set by the older 'Democracies' of this continent. . .less by Ekenj on February 25 2010, 22:02 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

Nice one Patrick, visit www.ifaisa.org Carl If, as he claimed in the after eight debate this week, Malema "added no value" to those companies, the question that arises is: why was he given his directorships in entities that do business with government? Could it possibly be that his political . .more connectivity and ability to swing tenders the way of the companies by his mere presence on their letterheads is the only value that he actually added? He has no discernable skills to do the type of work that the companies do, his talents lie in the field of securing tenders for them via influence peddling. The conflict of interest between his role as a party political leader and that of his companies as tenderers for contracts adjudicated upon by his party's deployed cadres in the municipalities involved is manifest, the opportunity for collusive dealings is obvious and the absense of accountability lamentable. Politics ought to be for the selfless service of the people; business is for making profit, creating jobs and promoting prosperity. The two don't mix, never have and never will. A SARS audit is indicated. Perhaps Malema is right in that his role in the companies in fact added no value, it merely increased the cost to taxpayers because the price of his ability to peddle influence was added to the tenders concerned and gratefully paid over to him by successful tenderers. . .less by Paul Hoffman on February 26 2010, 05:48 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

Nice, succinct article Thank you by Theseus on February 26 2010, 07:44 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

Tenderpreneurs! It's always the case with the ANC; "jobs for pals" all the way. The irony is though all South Africans pay Tax without any reference to political parties, when it comes to benefits the ANC has this wrong perception of entitlement. The ANC must stop . .more abusing Tax Payers' money and start delivering on its promises! . .less by Thandi Nontenja on February 26 2010, 07:44 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

gini co-efficient Business Day had an article a few years back showing how much worse (i.e. less equal) the Gini co-efficient has become since 1994, showing clearly what we all know: the ANC is not a wealth redistributor, but a vehicle to enrich its leaders by charlie on February 26 2010, 07:55 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

Jobs for Pals It very distinct that the ANC has kept jobs for Pals .If you look at the New Airport there is only ANC members that were allocated contracts. Vivan Reddy's company has been awarded all the electrical contracts although there has been an . .more accident with one his staff that has lost his life on site no questions asked. The question was raised that Vivan Reddy's company was alllocated the contract for Ushaka Marine World unethically but nothing has been said or done because Mike Suthcliff was also part of the Tendering Process . .less by Reg Naidoo on February 26 2010, 08:17 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

Let's sing "Malema, oh Malema, how the hell can we believe you?" by Basie Belastingbetaler on February 26 2010, 08:33 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

Get rich or die tryin' I think i'll have to take a different angle. I think we as a society are afraid to come into terms with the fact that young people are rich, encouraged by their role models, they live a high lifestyle, these american music videos encourage this. So malema . .more was already living that lifestyle even before becoming ANCYL president, so be it you are in ANCYL, YCL, DA Youth, IFPYB, or whatever, if an opportunity avail itself, grab it. I know of a variety of young people from IFPYB, DA Youth who are living a high life but no one is complaining about them. Maybe it's because they are not in the limelight as Malema but we all wanna be rich before we die if not die trying to be rich. ANC will continue appointing comrades, just like IFP will continue to appoint their people to serve in Zululand District municipalities, live with that, That's why we call it politics!!! Thank you . .less by SB Mthembu on February 26 2010, 08:39 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

ANC and Cosatu MUST break up This will be good for the country. The ANC is overrriden by imbeciles. I will never vote for them again! I wish a more inclusive party could emrge that will address the problems of this country head-on. by Concerned Black Person on February 26 2010, 08:54 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

From the top down I think Mtembu speaks for a number of South Africans and its a view that unfortunately endorses the current morally currupt situation. by The man in the street on February 26 2010, 09:22 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

Mbeki - the Poor - and BEE A bit rich of Mbeki to warn of the uprising of the poor - when he allowed a handful of ANC comrades to amass billions in BEE shares! Those shares can and should be taken back and distributed fairly. Much better to benefit 10 000 black families than one . .more Sexwale. . .less by Jan on February 26 2010, 09:36 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

ON MALEMA Writer you don't establish facts without a burden of proof....YOU'VE GOT AN EGG ON YOUR FACE AGAIN....Malema is yet to be proved...and your paper is going to BE SUED...for misrespresentation...go and re-learn journalism... by XOLI on February 26 2010, 09:40 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

Malema runs the country and that means we have a Mugabe or Hitler in control Make your own assumptions as to how safe you are, will you be murdered tonight, what is going to happen to your assets etc etc. Zuma is just a comedian looking for the next bunch of chicks so it seems. by Germany in the 30's or Zimbabwe in the now - take your pick on February 26 2010, 09:40 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

@Thandi Nontenja ALL South Africans pay tax ??? perhaps vat ... but no NOT all South Africans pay tax... the tax base is only like 5million out of nearly 50million people! Just makes your statement even MORE shocking ... as the vast majority of tax payers didnt . .more vote anc. . .less by BR on February 26 2010, 10:05 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

@ Xoli You and your boss Malema are thieves.Criminals stealing from the poor.The tenders are projects ment to lift the quality of life of the poor,not to make your criminal ANCYL leader rich.Did the projects even get completed you thief.To quote Malema 'I have . .more never seen a million rand'. Funny how he paid much more than that for a number of houses.You and your cabal are evil pigs...........LIAR! . .less by Noddy on February 26 2010, 10:29 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

What to do?? Nothing will happen. These tenderpreneurs will continue and nothing will happen. When we ask questions, we are called racists and that we dont want to see blacks achieve. When will blacks realise that this is not about race, its about right and wrong. . .more I would love to see blacks achieve, but just do it the right way. And there will be no problems. If the government is a progressive one, we will not complain. All we ask for is for corruption to stop and stop wasting our hard earned money which we give away to SARS. The only way this government will learn to stop this nonsense is when we all stand together and stop paying our tax. Are they going to arrest all 5 million of us? They can try... . .less by The Patriot on February 26 2010, 10:33 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

XOLI.. You are talking nonsense! Don't think that everybody is threatened by the idea of having to draw their own conclusion on this matter, involving yet another corrupt ANC cadre, whose denials have so far been proved speculative. Before . .more Malema is charged with fraud, there is no burden of proof and for as long as he appears to be dishonest, the public is left to make up their own mind. If I tell you that the sun is shining in South Africa between 6am and 6pm - you might feel the need to consult your local planetarium, but that would just be superfluous. . .less by Green Boot on February 26 2010, 11:06 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

LIFESTYLE AS A YOUTH LEADER MR MALEMA WAS SUPPOSE TO ADVOCATE ABOUT THE NYDA.THE MONEY NEEDED FOR THE NYDA TO RUN IS ABOUT 1 BILLION NEEDED FOR IT TO RUN THROUGHOUT PROVINCES. IS NOT ABOUT JULIUS BEING THE SUPERMEN TO YOUNG PEOPLE. INFACT HE IS ACCONTABLE TO THE . .more YOUTH OF SOUTH AFRICA HE MUST KNOW LEADERS CAME AND GO.PLEASE MR JULIUS KNOW MENACE MALEMA GO FOR YOUR LIFESTYLE AUDIT. WHAT ABOUT THE RESULOTION OFTHE ANCYL[2008]KNOW IMPLEMENTATION . .less by TEBOGO on February 26 2010, 12:08 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

our democracy It's a sad fact that this contribution is offered in an article on Malema - I should really get a life. But moving to my point. We exist in an internet age where we are empowered to trade goods and services where the common tools are linked by the . .more internet. That is the new democracy. We just need to accept that this democracy frees us to engage each other on terms which we (two parties only) set. Malema and his ilk don't understand this. We can move on anytime we choose, we just need to make the choice. . .less by bergen on February 26 2010, 12:25 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

ANC does not = BLACK Black people that have sweated in universities and later got jobs (middle class), excluding the tenderprenuer middle no longer share the same vision as the ANC. I think ANC's vision died the minute we allowed J.Zuma to escape his fraud cases by becoming a . .more president. That is what i call blind faith. Within my family there are those that will support Zuma and Malema regardless of what they do. It makes me sick, as it means S.A has a very real chance of ending up in the hands of a dictator. The majority of ANC voters are poor and illiterate. If you improve their status they might question you, so it is a good strategy for the ANC to keep the people poor and ignorant so they can retain majority. Instead of teaching the poor how to fish, they give them grants. Keeping them dependent on the ANC for survival. Unless this mentality changes, there will be limited progress in the fight against poverty. The ANC that fought for our freedom is not the present ANC, the sooner we realise that the better. Only problem is who do we run too? Coz COPE, DA and IFP are all useless. . .less by Mthoko on February 26 2010, 13:52 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

privatise Things have become much worse. This was inconceivable, prior to the Polokwane conference. It has now become necessary to privatise government's businesses in order to prevent the looting, cadre deployment and provide stability for our economy. by passrsby on February 26 2010, 15:41 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

@SB Mthembu " That's why we call it politics!!! " No it isn't; it's what is called nepotism and corruption. by Jeff on February 26 2010, 18:45 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

@Mthoko I don't see the DA being useless in the province and municipality they control. by Jeff on February 26 2010, 18:50 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

Now we have Juju!! You will all still have to eat the letters you threw at Juju!. One letter by one letter! Each and everyone of them! Juju is destined for Great Things, like being President! Then he will made you crawl and apologise! One by one! You will eat . .more your letters! Some people doy not like Juju, like those yellow Commies who are upset with him. But Juju is smarter, and he has strong support where it matters. Juju staggers on! He was enabled by the Black Sash Ladies, who made sure that the ANC was marketed as South Africa's liberators! Those witches worked their magic, risked their lives, entertained ANC Cadres in their homes given as Safe Houses in the Struggle days, these white upper crust ladies obsessed with and in love with dangerous dark ANC operatives on violent and risky missions during the apartheid days! They traveled overseas and besieged overseas politicians in the name of goodness to support the ANC!!! They spread pro-ANC propaganda locally and abroad!! They used the latest in psycho-marketing tools to convince everybody, everybody, that the ANC, including its Youth League, are sane, principled, super-genius, benevolent, god-sent, leaders who will bring development, health, wealth, peace, fairness, to all of SA. Did I say all of SA? No, I meant the whole world! They will save the whole world!! And now we have Juju!!! . .less by JVR on February 26 2010, 19:57 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

@Mthoko The opposion parties are small and accordingly have little chance to proof that they are a trustworthy alternative to the ANC. Maybe the DA in the Western Cape can ("yes we can"), we'll see. But then again, I feel that South Africa is almost . .more ungovernable, the much-lauded "unity in diversity" is not yet achieved or even never will be a reality. Hopefully such pessimism will be proven wrong in a not so far away future. . .less by Klaus in RSA on February 26 2010, 21:38 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

90 - 10 It really makes no difference to change leaders or political parties, if we allow leaders to continue serving the top 10%, whilst ignoring the needs of the 90%. To end the culture of impunity we need to hold our leaders accountable. The working class, the . .more middle class, professionals and intellectuals have to unite and challenge a system that continues to benefit only the upper class. Creating the largest and most dangerous divide on planet earth. Time for a real revolution. Time for the 90% to have a stake in our future. Time for justice. Time for action. . .less by Carl Wille on February 26 2010, 23:41 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

limpopo We have been trying to do business in limpopo for awhile and even when we wanted to give the profits to a feeding programme we were advised that this province is Malema,s and stay away by concerned on February 27 2010, 06:22 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

So what you're saying Mr. Lawrence...is? ...there is going to be another revolution because one pig is more equal than the other. Perhaps you could use your numbifying intellect to predict where such a power reallignment will go instead of just dropping everything in the last paragraph. by Goose on February 27 2010, 08:26 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

SARS is complicite with EVIL SARS is turning a blind eye to the ANC BEE Black Diamonds who are taking tax payer money, enriching themselves, and not even paying tax on their riches !!! I have not read of a single case SARS is investigating !!! by TaxPaYER on February 27 2010, 21:36 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

The ANC split is inevitable The time nigh when an intellectual conservative core will split out of the ANC and leave it without spine and with juju at the helm. The splinter, lead by respected leaders with sense will garner massive support (all the big money) leading to a truly . .more democratic election with real opposition. Problem will be keeping juju and his dumb strongmen from making the country ungovernable when they lose. This is being debated seriously already with some arguing that juju be taken out now whilst others say to give him more time to help force the split and then take him out. All this happens while jz snoozes and chases the maidens. Either way juju takes a fall. I say the ANC has already screwed up sufficiently to ensure a big voter split behind the credible leaders in the organization. Make the split soon (after SWC), garner support, and then have the jelly bean squashed like a fat little bug that goes pop when you step on it. . .less by kaliel on March 01 2010, 00:32 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

Eat Malema eat Malema you have worked hard for it Comrade Malema Shine balck diamond shine Make that money dont let them pull you down by swart gevaar on March 01 2010, 14:30 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

I love Malema I love Julius Malema & The ANC. I was charmed by him after that interview which really increased my previously poor ratings. No wonder the media loves running Julius Malema story, Julius sells papers! People need to stop being critical about the . .more rulling party because there is no better party than the ANC. Don't tell me about that fake DA leader Helen, she only cares about her 6 boyfriends & plastic surgery. Cope is not really coping as they will soon die a natural boring death. Even cope knows that, hence they keep going back to the ANC. IFP is almost dead while all other parties are meaningless. . .less by Deborah Patta on March 02 2010, 14:40 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

Outsourcing= White-tenderpreneuring There is a company that was formed by white people and claimed to be BEE. The bloody white motherfucker company owner created a fake black CEO who had no fucken office or a paylip. Every year dividends were paid out, our hard earned profits that we . .more darkies worked our A** out. The fake CEO will get R300-400k because his names and ID was listed as a director. The white sucker will get millions. In contrast the company did not get any major government contract, but was doing good fucken money from other whites in the private sector. The white sucker was passing the contract to himself through outsourcing deals (white tenderpreneuring) that he proposed and approved because he was a shareholder who took financial decisions as well. Outsourcing deals in private sector is rotten, goet. This rotten business in private sector is on a "broer skap" basis and therefore there is nothing wrong with what Julius did. Another thing, white people are shouting tax tax tax on Julius, for F*** sake, you don't pay tax on dividends bcoz it is accounted for via STC (IT 56). Directors have a legal duty on declare dividens received on their returns (IT12 and/ IRP6), which is a private matter. Idiots! . .less by Learning to hate whites on March 05 2010, 01:25 Find this comment inappropriate? Report it

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