Deputy foreign minister Aziz Pahad has taken on Stellenbosch academic Sampie Terreblanche over his new book that says the ANC has sold out to big capital. Pahad argues that private sector capital is essential for investment in the economy.
Writing an open letter to Terreblanche on ANC Today on the ANC internet website, Pahad spells it out: “You are, of course, aware that the bulk of capital in our country is privately owned. Obviously, it is important that this pool of capital is mobilised for investment in our economy. Without this there will be no growth. Most certainly, we have tried to encourage such investment, including investment by foreign owners of capital.”
The book — set to hit the market early next year — is being co-published by the University of Natal Press together with President Thabo Mbeki’s brother Moeletsi Mbeki’s KMM Review Publishing Company.
The book argues that the ANC has abandoned the poor and is perpetuating inequality and exploitation in the new post-apartheid South Africa.
It has sparked debate about the ANC’s economic policies ahead of the ruling party’s national conference next week in Terreblanche’s home town, Stellenbosch.
Terreblanche, a former economic adviser to apartheid president PW Botha but who later turned against apartheid, argues in favour of a social democratic system rather than what he sees as a pact with big business. He accuses the government of “systemic exclusion and neglect” of the poorest half of the population.
Pahad recalled the apartheid era discussions in the United Kingdom with Terreblanche. The academic had insisted that the ANC’s economic policies “were too singularly focused on redistribution to the exclusion of the central objective of growth”.
“I would imagine that you would not find it remarkable that our country continues to experience serious levels of poverty. It would however be remarkable that you would blame this poverty on the present government, on the basis that the dirt accumulated during three hundred years can be swept away in eight.
“As an economist you would also be aware of what we have been doing to use a significant part of the public revenues to raise the living standards of the poor. Even as we worked to reduce the budget deficit, we made certain that we did not decrease our social expenditures.
“Consistent with what you raised with us even before 1990, about the importance of economic growth, we have sought to attend to this matter. The performance of our economy during the current global slowdown indicates that we are succeeding to inject growth capacity in the economy.”
Even the report of the Bank of New York — The ADR Investor issue of November 2002, states that the BNY South Africa ADR Index is up 53,7% (through October 11), compared to declines of 27,0% for the BNY Composite ADR Index and 34.7% for the BNY Emerging Markets ADR Index.
Pahad, an ANC national executive member, added: “Even the correct demand to reduce the levels of unemployment in our country is, inherently, also a demand for increased investments in our economy. This means that we must encourage the owners of capital to invest. Does this constitute a sell out to the capitalists?”
To address the racial and gender skills imbalances, the ANC “have indeed tried to get more black people and women better qualified. We do not and will not apologise for this.
“Naturally, the result of this is that these qualified South Africans will earn more than the unqualified. As we succeed to get more black people pulled out of the ranks of the unskilled, the larger will be the pool of black people who belong to the middle class.” – I-Net Bridge