South Africa, now in its first ”teenager” year, has to abide by the tried and tested values in the Constitution to weather the turbulent years ahead successfully, former president FW de Klerk said on Friday.
Addressing a conference at Sun City, he said 2007 might well determine the future for the next 30 or 40 years.
Much depended on the outcome of the current ”struggle for the soul of the African National Congress [ANC]” between the Congress of South African Trade Unions, the South African Communist Party and the ANC Youth League on the one hand, and those who would like to maintain the general direction laid down by presidents Thabo Mbeki and Nelson Mandela on the other.
This struggle would be fought out at the ANC’s forthcoming national policy conference and, particularly, at its national conference in December.
”Unfortunately, those of us who are outside the ANC alliance will have little or no say in this process, which will nevertheless determine the environment in which we will all have to live and work for the foreseeable future,” De Klerk said.
”Perhaps, like concerned relatives, our role should be to give friendly but discrete advice …”
Among other things, the values on which the new society was based had to be maintained, as articulated and entrenched in the Constitution, he said.
The new South Africa would succeed or fail according to the ability to adhere to the Constitution and the national consensus it represented.
At the same time, much more had to be done to address the serious problems facing the country — preventing and alleviating the suffering caused by Aids, the unacceptable levels of violent crime and the ongoing and unacceptable inequality and poverty in society.
”Both Aids and crime are existential crises and require the mobilisation of whatever national resources might be needed to combat them.”
He said it was critical to take effective action to address the root causes of poverty and inequality, mainly unemployment.
While the causes of unemployment were many, rigid labour legislation was a central one.
It had raised the real cost of labour way above levels in other emerging economies with which South Africa had to compete in global markets.
High costs and over-regulation were major disincentives to job creation.
A labour system establishing basic minimum standards for all had to be created, but in a country like South Africa, much greater flexibility was required, especially for medium and small businesses, he said.
”And so South Africa is about to turn 13. As with most anxious parents, we love our teenager dearly.
”We can’t help showing friends the latest photos and bragging a little here and there about school grades and sporting successes.
”The fact is that the new South Africa, with all its growing pains, is so much better than the old one.
”However, if our teenager society is to successfully weather the turbulent years ahead it must abide by the tried and tested values in our Constitution.”
At the end of the day it needed do little more than honour the commitments already made in terms of Nepad (New Partnership for Africa’s Development) to adhere to democratic standards and abide by international norms of good governance.
”If it does these things I have no doubt that it will continue to develop into a strong, mature and successful adult,” De Klerk said. — Sapa