Extract It's difficult to imagine how Cyril Ramaphosa will begin to tackle the enormous problems facing this country given the many hoops he has to jump through before making even minor decisions. The ANC always comes to power dragging a caravan brimming with conceited comrades and their friends demanding to be consulted on every policy matter — the self-appointed guardians of the ideological realm. Sometimes it seems as though Ramaphosa, or anybody in his position, is not allowed to scratch his back without consulting a messenger at Cosatu House. There are too many cooks roiling this broth.
The ANC has dug us into a deep hole from which it now promises to rescue us. But while some, led by Ramaphosa, are clumsily trying to drag the country out of the ditch, others — led by Ace Magashule — are still furiously digging. The outcome is a standstill, paralysis. But that’s only half the story.
There was a time when even sensible types thought the tripartite alliance provided necessary stability, especially immediately after the transition from apartheid. It was prudent, I suppose, to have everybody inside the tent pissing out, to quote Lyndon Johnson.
But what began as a loose fellowship in the fight against apartheid has, with the attainment of the levers of power, solidified into an inner circle whose sole objective seems to be divvying up perks.
As a result there are just too many people who wield enormous influence on critical matters affecting the country simply by virtue of their proximity to power. Such people are nothing but parasites. They enjoy power without the burden of responsibility or accountability.
The ANC has dug us into a deep hole from which it now promises to rescue us. But while some, led by Ramaphosa, are clumsily trying to drag the country out of the ditch, others - led by Ace Magashule - are still furiously digging
— Barney Mthombothi
The country is crying out for decisive leadership. It certainly doesn't need the type of lekgotla that ultimately produced Magashule’s suicide note last week. It needs that sort of get-together like a hole in the head.
But it was not only Magashule’s ignorant interpretation of what happened at that meeting that spooked the markets; it was the fact that participants came out of it and wandered in all directions.
The SACP’s Solly Mapaila, for instance, revealed later, a tad boastfully, that he had been responsible for inserting into Magashule’s head that gem about the need for some quantitative easing. The result was utter chaos. No way to run a country already on its knees.
Co-governing with the unions and the communists has never worked, even at the best of times. There were skirmishes, for instance, over the growth, employment and redistribution (Gear) strategy, over youth unemployment, over the so-called Washington consensus. SA’s economic progress was held to ransom.
Even when the economy was doing relatively well, questions were still asked — for instance, about why it was maintaining a surplus. These were the disparate views of people who didn’t share the same economic or ideological outlook but who, for the sake of enjoying the fruits of power, needed to stick together. The president is often unable to move or lead, hostage to such differences.
Thabo Mbeki was removed from office in favour of Jacob Zuma not because he was corrupt or had failed in his job as president, but because apparently he had the temerity to take decisions without consulting the likes of the SACP’s Blade Nzimande and Zwelinzima Vavi of Cosatu, people who have never had the courage or inclination to subject themselves to the will of the electorate.
And so Zuma came, blundered and plundered. Now Ramaphosa is required to clean up the mess and set the country to rights. But his options to take tough decisions are already constrained by the fact that he owes his ascent to power to Cosatu and the SACP. It’s payback time. People such as Nzimande and especially Thulas Nxesi — who excelled himself during the Nkandla debacle — are in the cabinet primarily because they are SACP members.
Nzimande wears two hats: as SACP general secretary, he can criticise or even oppose government policy while sitting in Ramaphosa’s cabinet.
But it is in fixing the economy that Ramaphosa’s resolve and his relationship with his allies will be most tested. Key to this will be sorting out the mess at Eskom. The utility is overstaffed, with about 48,000 employees, while the ratings agencies say Eskom can be run optimally with about 14,000 workers. Clearly something has to give if Eskom is to be resuscitated. But the unions are against any retrenchments. Ramaphosa’s long-term solution is to break up Eskom into three freestanding units. Again the unions are dead against it.
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Even the determination to hold on to a moribund and cash-guzzling SAA is driven not by any ideological inclination, but by fear of displeasing the unions. A private owner or investor would immediately want to cut heads in order to run a lean and mean operation. And the unions know this.
There’s a study somewhere deep in the recesses of the government that has concluded that the public service needs to be reduced by more than 300,000. Government ministers furiously deny its existence.
Overall, unions have had a dreadful impact on the public service, particularly in our education system. Although they play an important role in a democracy, they should — like any other significant actor in society — be able to influence, but not dictate, government policy.
The ANC is, however, unlikely to dump its allies any time soon, especially now that its public support seems to be slipping. The confusion over policy is likely to persist.
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