Dr. Pieter Mulder, FF Plus Leader and Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, reply to President Zuma's State of the Nation Address, Parliament, February 16 2011
Speaker, Honourable President,
While the President gave his address on Thursday evening, I was thinking of Dubai and Nigeria, as well as the similarities and differences between the ANC and the National Party. The similarities are astounding. Just one example.
In 1978 Proff. Gerrit Viljoen as an Afrikaner intellectual wrote a book with the title: "Ideal and Reality, account of an Afrikaner," In the book he argues how the economic and other realities of South Africa are moving further away from the ideals and dreams of the National Party. He then proposes how the National Party's ideals and the realities of South Africa can move closer to each other.
In the president's speech Thursday evening the same tension between the ANC's ideals and ideology on the one hand and the stark realities of South Africa on the other side were present.
Some examples:
In his speech the president emphasized how important it is to create more job opportunities in South Africa. We agree with this. In the same breath he announces that new labour legislation will be introduced which without a doubt would stifle job-creation.
Another example: In his speech he emphasizes how important mining is and that it produces more than 30% of the country's income. In the same breath he confuses foreign investors when he uses Malema's language about mineral wealth which "belongs to all South Africans with the sate as custodian."
Another example: In his speech he emphasized that corruption and misapplication of taxes will not be tolerated. The FF Plus applauds the Special Investigative Unit which is investigating maladministration and have already recovered R44 million from public servants who had illegally received housing subsidies. But then we have to read in the newspapers that R100 million had been wasted on the Youth Festival.
These comments and actions send out conflicting messages to voters, to the private sector, to the agricultural community and investors.
Why do I say there are similarities between the ANC and the National Party?
Since the establishment of the ANC in 1912 the ANC had through conferences formed its policies and schooled its members. In 1994 the ANC takes over the government and those policies now be applied in practice. The hard realities of South Africa make many of the ANC policies unenforceable in practice.
The National Party had since 1914 formed its policies through conferences and debates. In this manner the nationalization of mines and the reigning in of the Oppenheimers had been popular NP policy views before the party governed. The hard realities of South Africa resulted in many of these policy views having had to be adapted from 1948 when the NP started governing.
Today the ANC is faced with the same dilemma. At Polokwane and other ANC conferences various populist decisions were made by ANC members. Decisions based on the propaganda on which ANC members had been schooled over many years. Because many of these decisions did not take the South African realities into account, it can not be applied in practice.
What makes it even more difficult is that the ANC are made up of many factions. The ANC leadership has to try and keep its wide ideological church together. How does one keep the nationalists, traditionalists, populists, capitalists, the communists and the social democrats in the ANC together? Which strategies are there? To do nothing is paralyzing - but to try to satisfy everyone - is as paralyzing. It leads to every faction pretending in public that their policy is not only the official ANC policy, but that it also enjoys the support of president Zuma. Thus the conflicting messages.
The only comfort that I have for president Zuma is that the ANC is not the only party with these problems. The old NP struggled with it, the DA is struggling with it and the FF Plus is struggling with it. There is only one solution. Do not put ordinary party members on a political hunger diet with populist propaganda. If I listen to the comments of the ANC Youth League, the "young lions" are in need of political education in the realities of South Africa - they are clearly on a reality hunger diet.
The only solution is that members of the party are confronted with the realities of South Africa through honest discussions. And remember: Every person is entitled to his/her own opinion - but not to his/her own facts! Thereafter leaders have to be prepared to take the right decisions, regardless of the consequences.
The ANC leadership will shortly be confronted with important policy decisions. In the interest of South Africa we are hoping that the right policy decisions will be taken, regardless of the consequences and the reactions of certain factions.
Why did I also think of Dubai and Nigeria while the president was speaking? Because I believe that these are the choices for South Africa.
Dubai is a modern city which was built in the middle of the desert. They are using the billions of dollars flowing from oil to build Dubai into a future tourism city. Through this they are ensuring for themselves a tourist future the day there will no longer be any money forthcoming from oil.
President Zuma refers in his speech to South Africa's mining assets which are calculated to be 2,5 trillion USA dollars and which will ensure an income for us for decades to come. This is our oil. We export millions of tons of coal and steel. What are we going to do with that income? Are we going to use it on welfare grants, as is the case presently, until there is no income from mineral resources or are we going to use the income to build South Africa up as a super power and establish modern infrastructure?
Nigeria has in the past 40 years earned more than $400 billion (approx. R3 000 billion) from its oil. Between 1965 and 2000 the per capita income from oil had risen from $33 (approx. R247) to $325 (approx. R2440). What did Nigeria do with it?
The ordinary Nigerian did not receive any advantage from this oil income. The number of Nigerians who have to live off less than $1 a day (approx. R7,50) has increased from 19 million in 1970 - that is 27% of the population (out of a total population of 70 million) to 90 million - that is 75% of the population (from more than 120 million today).
The most important reason for this weakening situation in Nigeria is that poor decisions had been taken by Nigeria's leaders over years. The decisions which had been made were not in the best interest of the broader population but in the best financial interests of the leaders themselves.
Chris Hani in an interview with Beeld (Beeld 29/10/1992, p17) shortly before his death said: "What I fear is that the liberators will reveal themselves to be elitists ... drive in Mercedes-Benz's and use up this country's resources ... and live in palaces and gather riches."
How many reports in newspapers do we see of ANC leaders who make the predictions of Chris Hani to be exactly true?
My third grandchild was born three months ago. She will be 50 years old in 2060. What is her future in South Africa and what will SA look like in 2060? As in Nigeria and Dubai, the decisions of leaders will determine what South Africa will look like in 2060. Will South Africa, as in the case of Dubai, have the most modern buildings, the latest technology, the best infrastructure and a high quality of life for all its citizens?
Or - Will South Africa be a full-blooded predator state with a corrupt political elite which like Mr. Kunene will eat Sushi off the bodies of women while 75% of South Africans, like Nigerians, live off less than $1 a day?
(It is frustrating for me to listen to some ANC political ideologues who often address us with all kinds of unenforceable theories. When their theories fail we end up as another state with a small rich elite and a mass of poor people.)
What can everyone here and I myself do to prevent such a negative future?
I can in a speech like this point out to the ANC that they are sending conflicting messages to the private sector and the commercial farmers which will result in us not succeeding in creating the necessary employment opportunities.
I can fearlessly criticize the ANC and point out their mistakes, as the FF Plus as an opposition parties does.
Apart from my opposition role it is also exciting for me to participate in discussions in cabinet committees as deputy minister as to how South Africa should look like in 20 years' time. Then my grandchild will just be of age. What will the position of Afrikaans be then? What is the best recipe to secure harmony between the different groups in South Africa? Can we learn something of how modern self-determination is applied in Europe, in Sudan and in Ethiopia? Which harbours do we have to enlarge? Where can new dams and irrigation schemes be built? Is it sensible to build a speed rail from Johannesburg to Durban? How do we change over from coal to nuclear power? How can we utilize the Northern Cape's sun-power economically?
When I have done this, then I pray tonight: "The Lord will perfect that which concerns me" (Ps. 138 verse 8) and "Cast all your cares on Him, for He cares for you" (1 Peter 5 verse 7).
Issued by the FF Plus, February 16 2011
Click here to sign up to receive our free daily headline email newsletter
