POLITICS

A word of advice for President Ramaphosa – TLU SA

Henry Geldenhuys says ANC rapidly putting SA on the road to Africa’s rubbish heap of economic failure

A word of advice for President Ramaphosa

11 January 2021

Dear Mr Ramaphosa

With 2020 behind us and the new year in full swing, it’s an excellent time to evaluate where we are in our lives – in our personal circumstances, families and work, and of course also in the context of South Africa.

MrRamaphosa, it is time for the government to take stock of what is wrong and how it must be fixed. We thought it fit to point out to you the most significant problem areas that are standing in the way of development in South Africa:

Corruption and self-enrichment, even during a pandemic that is going unpunished. Where is the rest of the R20 million spent on face masks and soap, when the cost was R7 million? At wholesale prices, this cost would have been even lower. Who is being held responsible for this, and how are they going to compensate for it?

Cadre deployment and black economic empowerment have thus far enriched only a few and have not in the least contributed to the empowerment of South Africans; on the contrary, they have caused significant harm.

The government’s policy environment is unfriendly towards overseas investors and local small- and medium-sized businesses. The country desperately needs investors – you know this well, Mr Ramaphosa.

The three-party alliance with the SACP and Cosatu puts South Africa in checkmate regarding policy. The ANC has no choice but to dance to the other two parties’ socialist and communist tune, which creates uncertainty with investors.

The internal strife in the ANC seems to be more important than governing our country properly. No action is taken against senior ANC members that are guilty of corruption and self-enrichment. It looks as if you condone this behaviour. Is that the case?

The government’s labour policy leads to greater unemployment every year. It is outrageous to instead create dependency on government grants to prove a point about a minimum wage. The country isn’t economically capable of paying a minimum wage.

Affirmative action hasn’t fixed anything, and the country has instead paid dearly for it. Lack of expertise at the Landbank endangers food security. Mismanagement of the Landbank drives the commercial agricultural sector to its knees regarding financing. The same goes for every state institution that lines up for a life preserver that ultimately saves nothing.

The racist approach to providing aid in the agricultural sector is short-sighted. Your aid programmes meant to guarantee food security are a big lie. Aid is given to subsistence farmers that produce a mere 1% of South Africa’s food. Where is the government when it comes to supporting the commercial agricultural sector in times of severe drought?

The ANC government is not a government for all citizens, but only for cadres in the inner circle. “A better life for all” is a hollow utterance. The masses will see how everyone in the country will struggle to keep their heads above water when you have finally laid waste to the national treasury.

TLU SA and our members are serious about making a positive contribution to our country’s future and inhabitants. It is tragic that you – the ANC government – make it virtually impossible for role players to implement the very principles that would bring about economic growth.

Perhaps you all need a few basic lessons in economics. No law or point of view can change certain immutable principles. The economy grinds forth unremittingly, and each individual, business, and our country are continuously measured against those principles. No announcement that is out of line with these principles will pass the test. Few of your announcements pass the economic test.

The ANC’s legacy is rapidly putting our country on the road to Africa’s rubbish heap of economic failure.

If you don’t implement the following as soon as possible, South Africa will sink even deeper into junk status and have more poverty to deal with.

Put an end to the policy of affirmative action and black economic empowerment (BEE). Appoint knowledgeable people.

Act purposefully against corruption and self-enrichment on all levels.

Get the SAPS’s house thoroughly in order so that the public can trust them again.

Institute preventative, strict action against crime, especially farm murders.

Accept the principle of private rights of ownership and the free market as the only mechanism that can create wealth and abandon expropriation policy without compensation. The government must declare this openly as policy and reject any form of socialism or communism.

Set aside the minimum wage while the economy recovers, in light of South Africa’s high unemployment. Let the market regulate labour. Unemployment is worse than a low salary. Getting our unemployed labour market employed would also go a long way towards fighting crime.

Respect all groups and people, as determined by the constitution, and abandon your racist undertones.

Apply proven economic principles in your policy to enable economic growth.  The government cannot create economic growth. It can only be done by the private sector.

Mr Ramaphosa, it is your choice to implement these suggestions and give every South African the opportunity to build a bright future, or to instead continue on the destructive path that you’re on.

We remind you specifically of the words with which you end every Covid speech: May God bless our country. TLU SA recognises that all authority comes from God and that the government is also under this authority. We live by the Word of God – the Bible. We therefore also want to request that you keep the prescripts of the Bible in mind when enacting regulations and in your day-to-day actions.

TLU SA and our members will continue to build this country to the best of our ability and by the command of the Triune God.

Yours truly,

Henry Geldenhuys, President TLU SA,

Issued by TLU SA, 11 January 2021