Global South African News Wrap 30 November 2012 Zuma calls on ancestors DA ready to focus on 2014 elections Hostility

y towards DA seems to be slowly withering away DA plan to elevate new generation Plan to clean up fruit industry Moment of truth for secrecy bill authors State underspends works minister Ndebele warns of drift as Zille sets sights on 2014 Let's learn from Brazil 'No political speeches please' SA is failing its heritage Zille holds DA rivals at bay ANC branches revolt ANC Womens League backs Zuma for president Ministers pay pledge backfires MPs walk out as ANC passes secrecy bill Gordhan vows to reduce deficit, regain confidence Situation on farms waiting to explode Ramaphosas candidacy, economic policy African lessons for ANC

25 November 2012 Cape Times Page 4 Bongani Hans and Sipho Khumalo Zuma calls on ancestors KwaZulu-Natal - President Jacob Zuma, who faces mounting criticism and a strong attempt to remove him as ANC leader, has turned to his ancestors for help before Mangaung. Zumas family slaughtered 12 cows and burnt traditional incense at his Nkandla homestead, at a ceremony in which Zulu warriors danced, sang songs and brandished traditional weapons. ANC leaders were nowhere to be seen, but Zuma, in leopard skin, lifted his spear and danced as thousands prayed for him to win a second term as ANC president. Inkosi Bheki Zuma gave him a Zulu shield and spear, and told him to use the weapons to protect himself from his ANC opponents. Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe is expected to challenge Zuma. The ceremony came as various provinces, including KZN, held provincial general councils to nominate leaders for Mangaung. Zuma and his secretary-general, Gwedwe Mantashe, were overwhelmingly nominated by KZN to keep their current positions.

The ceremony at Nkandla appeared to be a repeat of what Zuma did in the run-up to the 2007 Polokwane conference, when he visited King Goodwill Zwelithini to get his blessing. The meat, cooked on a fire, was dished out to guests, who also enjoyed traditional beer. We are here to give our father a send-off to Mangaung. With this ceremony we are now sure he is protected and he will come back to celebrate with us, said Nomthandazo Zuma.

Buses transported family members and relatives from around KZN. The ceremony started at the homestead of the Nxamalala clans Bheki Zuma, where traditional incense was burnt, a symbol of communicating with the ancestors. Zuma then led armed warriors to his old homestead, Entembeni.

The ceremony ended in his luxurious homestead, where his brother Michael and other elders continued to talk to the ancestors. Michael gave a rundown of Zumas credentials as a freedom fighter who had spent time in prison and in exile. Towards the end of the ceremony, Zumas son Edward instructed police and bodyguards to escort journalists, including those from The Mercury, out of his homestead. Who invited you? Who told you to come here? he asked. At the nomination conference in Durban, Cyril Ramaphosa was nominated for deputy president. However, this had to go to the vote because other branches nominated Motlanthe. When these nominations went into voting Ramaphosa emerged strongly. For deputy secretary-general, party veteran Jessie Duarte was nominated. Baleka Mbete was nominated for national chairwoman, the position she currently holds. While Premier and ANC chairman Zweli Mkhize was nominated for treasurergeneral this had to go into voting as other branches nominated current treasurer-general, Mathew Phosa, Home Affairs Minister Naledi Pandor and former finance minister Trevor Manuel. 26 November 2012 Cape Times Page 1 Gaye Davis DA ready to focus on 2014 elections Johannesburg -DA leader Helen Zille pledged on Sunday that when her party meets for its next congress in three years time, South Africas political landscape would be fundamentally altered. Zille was speaking after the end of the partys fifth national congress in Boksburg over the weekend, where she was re-elected as party leader unopposed. Party federal council chairperson Wilmot James won his contest with fellow MP Masizole Mnqasela, but votes for the hotly contested three positions of deputy chairpersons did not go entirely according to the plans of his backers. While incumbent Anchen Dreyer MP was returned and DA national spokesperson Mmusi Maimane was voted in, DA youth leader Makashule Gana took the third spot. Zille welcomed his election, but Jamess backers had been hoping MP Joe Mcgluwa would make the cut.

Results of the elections, which saw 1 466 voting delegates casting their ballots from 6.30am on Sunday, were announced to general jubilation at around 3pm. Maimane will remain DA national spokesperson and leader of the Joburg DA caucus, while Gana will continue as youth leader until its elective congress. The congress was designed to supercharge the activists and councillors, members of provincial legislatures and Parliament for the DAs big push for the 2014 elections. It has its sights set on winning the Northern Cape and possibly also Gauteng the countrys economic hub in the 2014 national and provincial elections. A constitutional amendment carried unanimously allows for the party to hold its next congress in 2015 instead of in two years time, allowing it to focus efforts on winning over voters. Zille pledged she would spend the next three years working to complete her promise when first elected party leader in 2007 of bringing about a realignment in South African politics. This would comprise building a non-racial centre on the foundation of a set of basic values: respect for the rule of law and the independence of the judiciary, a market economy, redress and reconciliation and delivery. And you have given me three more years to realise that vision, she said. I will strive and work every day to have earned your confidence. While the politics of realignment was never easy, the DA had learned from its mistakes in the past and would not repeat them, Zille said. The partys underpinning principles were non-negotiable and would not be sacrificed for numbers, she said. The DA has been in talks with minority parties for some time and has helped launch a multiparty forum in Parliament. Zille has offered dual membership which brought the ID on board ahead of local government elections to Cope, the United Democratic Christian Party and the Minority Front. But this is unlikely to bring voters in sufficient numbers to achieve the DAs goal of unseating the ANC and entering the Union Buildings in 2019. Zille said on Sunday it was pointless for people to beg her to bring the DA here when what was needed was for voters to exercise their choice and support the party at the ballot box when it contested by-elections in municipalities across the country. You cant govern unless you win an election, she said. Its up to you. Numbers are important.

She sad the DA understood that making headway as a party required more than a founding congress, a constitution and a good speech. Dubbed the blue machine, the DA is setting up networks of activists in wards across the country. We are focused outwards, on voters, and not inwards on internal power struggles, Zille said. It also had strong structures to mediate where there were conflicts between individuals. She said while 2014 seemed a short distance away it was a long time in politics, especially when the situation was as fluid as it was in South Africa. On Sunday, resolutions were passed that committed DA members to learning other official languages as well as the simultaneous translation of future congress proceedings.

26 November 2012 Business Day Page 4 Stephen Grootes Hostility towards DA seems to be slowly withering away THE Democratic Alliances (DAs) federal congress held at the weekend raised many questions about its future and role in our politics. Its planners are ambitious, and leader Helen Zille said on Saturday that it was possible for the party to take Gauteng in 2014 when the next national elections are held. "Its a stretch, but its possible." This seems fanciful at first glance, considering the African National Congress (ANC) still has more than 65% of the national vote. But an examination of the last five years shows the DA has changed dramatically and the situation it finds itself in has changed significantly too. Some of this relates to the changing face of the economy, but it also has much to do with the differences between President Jacob Zuma and former president Thabo Mbeki. Ms Zille was elected leader in 2007. The leader before her, Tony Leon, had to learn to speak Afrikaans on the job. In the 2007 leadership election, all three candidates Zille, Joe Seremane and Athol Trollip could speak Xhosa, which was a major change in itself.

However, more was to come. When Mr Leon met Mr Mbeki, in their only official meeting while the former was official leader of the opposition, he did so at a time when the SABC had, up to that point, refused to carry parts of the DA's conference live on radio and TV. This weekends conference was covered by SABC2, SAfm and, perhaps most significantly, Ikwekwezi FM which does not broadcast primarily in English. Ms Zille has been fulsome in her praise of the SABC, saying it has been fully professional throughout the process. This lack of hostility appears to be mirrored in parts of the country where the DA has not been welcome before. It has become common for DA leaders to visit some of the poorest parts of South Africa, and in areas where inequality is stark. Part of this process has seen experienced white DA councillors going into areas such as the Kya Sands informal settlement, and using their knowledge and experience to be seen to make a difference. Some of these communities appear to have become less hostile to the partys message and in some areas even seem to welcome it. Other strategies have included trying to move the debate away from identity. The youth wage subsidy was a major example of this. The DA tried, it seems with some success, to show that the ANC was preventing jobs being created by not instituting the subsidy. The Congress of South African Trade Unions reaction during a DA march on its headquarters played right into the partys hands. Instead of a debate about identity, it was about economics in which the DA has the ANCs record to point to. But perhaps the biggest change has been Mr Zumas leadership of the ANC and the antics of the partys former ANC Youth League leader, Julius Malema. Ms Zille has always claimed that Mr Malema would push the "realignment of our politics". After last years local government elections, the ANC itself blamed Mr Malema for its poor showing in minority communities, after he had claimed that "whites are criminals", in what may have been an attempt to get the young black vote. But for the opposition party, Mr Zumas leadership has provided a useful symbol under which to claim the ANC is corrupt. His Nkandla residence, failure to appoint a Special Investigating Unit head and his appointment of Bheki Cele as national police commissioner are some of the instances the DA has been able to use to back its claim the ANC is not fit to lead. The alleged inaction by Mr Zuma on the economy is another. The DA campaign appears to have had its biggest effect on urban, younger and well-educated black people who appear to be questioning their loyalty to the ANC. But the DA still has a long road ahead.

For many, it still appears "too white" and there is still a large liberation dividend held by the ANC. The 2014 national elections are likely to show just how much further the party has to go.

26 November 2012 Business Day Page 4 Karl Gernetzky DA plan to elevate new generation DEMOCRATIC Alliance (DA) federal chairman Wilmot James was re-elected to his position in the partys highest decision-making structure on Sunday, and as the DA steps up efforts ahead of the 2014 national election, delegates have put two young, energetic black men into positions of deputy federal chairmen. The DAs new executive will need to guide the party for the next three years ahead of the next federal congress and through the 2014 elections, in which the DA hopes to gain 30% of the vote. On the final day of the DAs two-day federal congress in Boksburg on Sunday, national spokesman Mmusi Maimane gained the most votes in the contest for the three deputy federal chairman posts, after facing eight other contenders. Public works spokeswoman Anchen Dreyer was re-elected as deputy federal chairwoman, and the third post went to DA youth leader Makashule Gana. Mr James was able to retain his position despite an aggressive challenge from DA MP Masizole Mnqasela. Mr Maimane said on Sunday : "The DA is not about race, it is a party for all South Africans." Because of the DA, "a child from Soweto can today stand before you as your deputy chair," he said. Mr James said on Sunday the "promise" was that the DA would win one more province possibly two as well as get 30% of the national vote. "The only way we can accomplish this is if we push in the same direction," he said. DA leader Helen Zille retained her position, which went uncontested. However, Ms Zille said on Saturday she hoped this represented a vote of confidence in her policies, including that of elevating a new generation of party leadership. On Sunday, she said the core focus of the team would be to accelerate "delivering opportunities for all South Africans, particularly those who remain disadvantaged by our divided past", as well as a "realignment of politics".

Closing the congress On Sunday, Ms Zille said this "realignment of politics is not easy. We have learned some very important lessons." The post of DA federal council chairman also went unchallenged and was retained by James Selfe. Mr James told Business Day in the run-up to the congress he would campaign on a platform of further strengthening the DA through increasing participation with civil society, faith-based organisations and labour unions. This was needed to present policies that would be of demonstrable benefit if implemented, he said. This year has seen the DA push its alternative platforms, having conducted a six-week campaign to increase awareness of the partys newly formulated Growth for Jobs Plan. Mr James said the DA would also shift its focus to the creation of "secondgeneration" policies, including those on environmental matters and energy. He had also been involved in the DAs drive for a "realignment" of the opposition, presenting the proposal of dual membership such as had been instituted with the Independent Democrats in the Western Cape. This had been rejected, notably by the Congress of the People and the United Democratic Movement, with leadership from both parties expressing concerns of being "submerged". This role, however, had been transferred two weeks ago to DA parliamentary leader Lindiwe Mazibuko, who said on Saturday that lessons had already been learnt through the joint action by minority parties on issues such as the Protection of State Information Bill.

26 November 2012 Business Day Page 3 Hopewell Radebe Plan to clean up fruit industry FACING threats of an international boycott of its produce, the fruit industry has introduced a programme, the Sustainability Initiative of South Africa, to support growers and employees in the improvement of working conditions on farms. Steps to introduce the programme have been in the making since 2008 and if all fruit farming parties had come on board earlier, some in the sector believe the De Doorns violent labour protests could have been prevented.

However, the reluctance by some organised farming bodies in the industry to support the programme on the grounds that it s benchmark s were too strict and that it was imposing international ethical codes on workers living standards, had prolonged its negotiations and consultation period and, subsequently, its implementation. Fruit South Africa ethical trade co-ordinator Colleen Chennell said it was most unfortunate that the Western Cape problems started just as the industry was reaching consensus and was preparing itself to engage in a structured manner. "We plan to launch the programme throughout the fruit farming community in a bid to support growers and employees with the continuous improvement of working conditions on farms and we will soon roll it out throughout country. "It is timeous that the fruit industrys ethical trade programme is being launched in a bid to support growers and employees with the continuous improvement of working conditions on farms throughout South Africa," she said. Agriculture, and the fruit industry in the Western Cape in particular, has faced the serious challenge of violent worker protests in the past three weeks. Ms Chennell said the Sustainability Initiative of South Africa programme would have growers audited by independent auditors on a locally developed and internationally recognised standard, which would enable them to provide evidence of ethical compliance to all parties, including retailers, the government, nongovernmental organisations and unions. "The formal establishment of (the programme) is the culmination of four years of industry consultations, engagement with a broad range of stakeholders and document and resource development." She said there was now broad support for the programme from the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, the Confederation of South African Workers Unions, and international and local retailers. The fruit industry project comes almost a year after the wine industry initiated moves to clean up its tarnished international reputation after a Human Rights Watch study last year said workers were being exploited on wine farms. Responding to criticism and threats to its international market, the industry established a seal to be used by qualifying wine producers as part of a peerreview audit system of labour-related practices in wine estates and suppliers farms aimed at encouraging fair labour practices. The Sustainability Initiative of South Africa is therefore a locally driven ethical programme by the fruit industry which has aligned its social standards to South African labour law and benchmarked this against international

requirements through a process managed by the Global Social Compliance Programme.

26 November 2012 Business Day Page 2 Wyndham Hartley Moment of truth for secrecy bill authors AFTER years of bitter political wrangling, this week is crunch time for the "secrecy bill", with the African National Congress (ANC) in Parliaments upper house apparently determined to use its majority to push it through. The ANC will also be at the centre of the other major issue this week as more branches and provinces complete their nominations for the party leadership for the Mangaung elective conference next month. The process concludes on Friday. Opposition parties and civil society have battled with the ruling party for years to get some of the more offensive provisions of the Protection of State Information Bill changed or removed. While the bill bears little resemblance to the one originally tabled by State Security Minister Siyabonga Cwele, a coalition of civil society organisations have vowed to challenge it in court if it is approved in its present form. Last week chairman of the National Council of Provinces ad hoc committee on the Protection of State Information Bill Raseriti Tau issued a statement saying: "Members of the multiparty committee have agreed on most of the proposed amendments. They have also agreed to disagree on some amendments." The bill will be finalised at a meeting of the ad hoc committee tomorrow and is due to go before a plenary of the National Council of Provinces on Thursday. But the Right2Know campaign said it remained committed to fighting for a just classification law that governs how the state should keep limited secrets. "If Parliament fails to introduce the necessary amendments and President Jacob Zuma signs it into law, the Right2Know will take the fight to the Constitutional Court." The key issues in the nominations process for the ANC are how many branches will endorse Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe and whether Cyril Ramaphosa will agree to run for the deputy presidency on a "Zuma ticket". Political commentator Adam Habib, writing in the Daily News, has described the branch nominations as fraught with controversy. "Branches are struggling

to get quorums, having sometimes to meet three or four times before they can even have the required numbers of people to legally make nominations. "But even more worrying is the suggestion that the nomination process is not free and fair. Branch membership lists are said to have paid up phantom members. "In many cases intimidation and violence accompany the nominations process." Mr Habib concluded that while the ANC has said it will deal firmly with any member who is involved in such acts, all indications are that this warning has not been heeded and that the process is fraught with threat and fear. It will further be of interest to see whether National Assembly speaker Max Sisulu heeds a call from the Democratic Alliance to have Parliament recalled. The partys parliamentary leader, Lindiwe Mazibuko, has called for such a move after further revelations appeared in the weekend press that Mr Zuma knew about the nearly R250m being spent on his Nkandla property.

26 November 2012 Business Day Page 1 Mark Allix State underspends works minister WHILE acknowledging a "rising underspend" by the government, Public Works Minister Thulas Nxesi says the pace of transformation in SAs construction sector is far too slow. He says this is particularly evident among listed construction and engineering groups and higher-tier subcontractors. In response, the government has said it intends to criminalise fronting, boost supply chain diversification in state procurement, and monitor black economic empowerment verification agencies more closely all of which is in line with the states amended empowerment codes. The minister, however, says accelerated change in equity and ownership must be driven by "all sectors" of society, and lead to a "globally competitive industry". Many blacks are represented in the lower levels of the construction sector, along with steadily increasing ownership. But registered built-environment professionals and technical staff are still mostly white males. South Africa faces critical skills shortages as insufficient black graduates are being produced to replace them.

At a construction industry "transformation summit" in Johannesburg on Friday, agencies in the Department of Public Works acknowledged "rising underspend" by the government. They also indicated that poor-quality construction projects cost the state R3.5bn annually. But the racial and spatial history of apartheid presents great challenges. In this regard, the government has adopted a more militant tone on black economic empowerment, driven by the Department of Trade and Industry. Mr Nxesi said he understood amendments to broad-based black economic empowerment codes to be mandatory. "But whether they are being enforced, or are enforceable, is another matter," he said. Construction Industry Development Board chairman Bafana Ndendwa said empowerment was vital to growing SAs economy. "Fronting deserves special attention and not because the fraud laws in SA are inadequate." He said all construction companies in SA had been invited to take part in infrastructure development. But few large firms had wanted to build low-cost housing, schools and clinics, until the poor economic climate had hit their pockets. Authorities were considering "clustering" such projects, enabling big contractors to build 20 schools at a time. But Mr Ndendwa said this would disadvantage smaller competitors. To this end, the state was considering "ring-fencing" upper-tier infrastructure contracts to promote higher levels of empowerment. Mr Nxesi said the amended empowerment codes were "not intended to destroy companies", but the government needed to be able to conduct "proper estimates". He acknowledged a crisis in SAs construction sector. This stemmed not only from global instability, but because the governments "supply chain management processes are horrible". But the private sector was also to blame. "We come from a history of corruption, overpricing and collusion." Port Elizabeths Herald newspaper said this month the metro employed only one registered professional engineer. At one time it had 50. This deepened government reliance on consultants. There was also a heightened risk of declining quality control, fraudulent tendering, and the decay of road, water and sewage systems.

26 November 2012 Business Day Page 1 Karl Gernetzky

Ndebele warns of drift as Zille sets sights on 2014 SOUTH Africa faces "drift" with an "absent referee who is not in the field of play", University of Johannesburg chancellor Njabulo Ndebele told the Democratic Alliances (DAs) national congress on Sunday. Prof Ndebele, a guest speaker at the congress at which party leader Helen Zille was elected unopposed, said the symptoms of this lack of leadership and "scant regard for the rules" were a busy but underfunded public protector, continuing stress in parastatal companies, problems with basic education, and instability in the labour sector. Prof Ndebeles address to the gathering may help deflect criticism that the DA remains a party of whites, a charge repeated at the weekend by South African Communist Party chief Blade Nzimande, who called the DA a party of "white madams and baases". Ms Zille said on Sunday she was optimistic about the 2014 elections. The federal congress, she said, had shown the DA forging ahead, while "fundamental flaws" in the African National Congress (ANC) would hasten its disintegration. The DA has targeted 30% of the vote in 2014, continued control of the Western Cape, as well as one possibly two more provinces, newly reelected federal chairman Wilmot James said. Ms Zille refused to be drawn on time frames for realigning the opposition, saying such alignment would come only with the careful management of the "catalytic moments" that would characterise the ANCs decline. Newly elected deputy federal chairman Mmusi Maimane said he would work to grow the party in Gauteng, his home province. A resolution on Sunday reaffirmed the partys "liberal democratic values", and called for promotion of the partys values in order to protect the institutional culture even as membership grows. Ms Zille said while the DA would not focus on membership numbers, unlike the ANC, the party could only implement its policies if it were elected. "We can only govern according to our principles and policies," and this was the message the DA would take "to every community," she said.

26 November 2012 The Times Page 15 Jay Naidoo Let's learn from Brazil

'The biggest legacy of my presidency is not the programmes that took 30million Brazilians out of absolute poverty and created 15million jobs. It is the accountability of the public institutions and the real partnership with business, labour and civil society that brought hope to the people. We put the needs of the people first, not ours." This was the fundamental point that former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva made when we met this week. It was a meeting that will be difficult to forget. "I was not the president. The people were the president. The foundation of the 'Brazilian Miracle' is not mine. It is that of the people. If I failed my people who elected me, it would be the people failing, and the poor would be proving their critics right that we did not have what it takes to rule," he said. The challenges of his first term were tremendous. Faced with hyper-inflation, an unfriendly bureaucracy and a suspicious military, the Lula administration faced difficult choices. The Workers' Party, led by Lula, represented only 17% of the members of a fragmented and chaotic congress dominated by powerful vested interests that would more often than not oppose his policies. He recognised the need to stabilise the macroeconomic environment through pragmatic policies that established stability. But he did that through a transparent dialogue, even with his fiercest critics. Lula is the antithesis of the "big man" syndrome of political arrogance that dominates so many governments. He criss-crossed the country; engaged the landless movements, trade unions, civil society and social movements. His first term was defined by the launch of the "Zero Hunger" campaign, with a commitment that every Brazilian family should have a meal three times a day. The Zero Hunger programme covers more than 12million families, a quarter of Brazil's population of 190million; it provides conditional direct cash transfers to reduce short-term poverty and places an obligation on parents to ensure that their children are in school and vaccinated. Breaking the inter-generational cycle of poverty was the hallmark of the Lula presidency. But the long-term goal was to improve the human capital. Lula is convinced that the right to quality education and social inclusion are the most important tools for building a globally competitive economy for any country. He prides himself on creating the most universities and technical schools. "By tackling poverty, improving skills and investing in education, the government was critical in accelerating the rise of the poorest to decent jobs and to the middle class." One of his first actions as president was to set up the presidential advisory body Consea, in which civilians were integrated into the design and

implementation of the Zero Hunger programme. It allowed non-state activists to influence government policy. Special credit lines to small farmers, who account for 70% of food production, grew an entire industry around tractors for small farmers, and facilitated their access to seed, finance, water, land and fertiliser. Consea lobbied Congress to pass a bill obliging local governments to buy at least 30% of the family farmers' produce and linked them to the government's schools feeding programmes, thereby boosting family farmers' income and giving them vital access to markets. The immediate effect was the improvement in health, education and nutrition of their children. The trade unions negotiated a special programme with state banks of responsible borrowing against pay cheques, which cut out unscrupulous money lenders and avoided a debt trap for millions of workers. For the first time, countless Brazilians saw hope and opportunity materialise, and consumption grew in the economy as lifestyles improved. A staggering 50million people moved up into the ranks of the middle class. The current president of Brazil, Dilma Rousseff, replaced the previous head in 2006. She unified social programmes, instituted management systems and centralised monitoring, planning and accountability. Lula's second term was defined by the Growth Acceleration Programme, a project of more than $350-billion which aims to remove barriers to growth and drive infrastructure development. The leading roles of the Brazilian National Development Bank and other parastatals were critical in taking the risks that drove an industrial and infrastructure strategy that opened up new sectors and crowded in private capital. In 2011, the national development bank disbursed close to $100billion. And what happened when Lula left? In office for two years, Rousseff has taken a tough line, firing seven ministers for corruption, misuse of funds and influence peddling. She has exceeded Lula in popularity. As the political temperature rises at home as we approach Mangaung and the next general election, I hope Rousseff's no-nonsense approach to governance will be instructive for those wanting to learn from the "Lula Moment". Lula is not a saint. There are legitimate criticisms of his failure to implement a more radical agrarian-reform programme and for not being tougher on corruption. But as I listen to the instructive voices from Brazil, I understand what it takes to be a servant leader. Such a leader unifies a hurting nation, listens to the desperate voices of the marginalised, and lowers toxicity in public debate

while maintaining the robustness of public discourse. It is a return to the spirit of service, reconstruction and development that inspired our nation at birth, guided by our oath to deliver a better life to all our people. And the servant leader in South Africa could push for our own Lula Moment. The steps are not so difficult to formulate: we need to make transparency our starting point and priority, then make a social contract to establish trust between business, government and unions. Only then will the forgotten sense hope. And only then will we bring the best and brightest among us to serve this hurting nation and pull it out of the morass that is South African reality today. When do we start?

26 November 2012 The Times Page 9 Quinton Mtyala 'No political speeches please' ANC Western Cape leader Marius Fransman was yesterday prevented from speaking at the funeral of a Wolseley farmworker - the first to have been killed during protests about farmworkers' wages two weeks ago. On Friday the provincial ANC announced that Fransman would speak at Michael Daniels' funeral. Daniels, 28, was killed, allegedly by the police, as protesters rampaged through Wolseley on November 14 demanding that their minimum wage be increased from R70 to R150. Yesterday Fransman sat quietly in the Uniting Reformed Church after greeting Daniels' mother. But instead of speaking to the mourners he left after about an hour. The mourners were told that he had to be at a meeting elsewhere. Earlier, the church's council had decided that there would be no "political speeches" at the funeral service. But the ANC's Boland chairman, Pat Maraan, said the decision by the church was against the wishes of the family and Fransman was not told about the change of plan until just before the service started. At Daniels' home earlier, mourners were told that he had been the sole breadwinner of his family and that though his circumstances were difficult he had not lost hope.

Witzenberg's DA mayor, Stefan Louw, said the family had been counselled by local leaders. "He seemed to be at the wrong place at the wrong time," Louw said. Asked about relations between the farmers and their workers, almost two weeks since the violent protests, Louw said "overall it was normal but here and there we had problems". He blamed the violence on outside forces, saying the ANC had bused in its supporters to cause trouble. "You can see [that this protest] was connected to politics," said Louw. Food and Allied Workers' Union general secretary Katishi Masemola said the union would continue to support farmworkers and their demands for higher wages. He said there had to be a negotiated settlement to avert a repeat of the violence of two weeks ago. "For a majority of farmworkers there hasn't been a 1994 [advent of democracy] but we will plead with them to accept an extension to the negotiations," said Masemola. The government, agricultural unions and farmworkers' representatives are locked in talks for an improvement to the current sectoral wage determination before the December 4 deadline. Sarah Claasen, president of the Sikhula Sonke Farm Workers' Trade Union, said it was unlikely that a deal would be struck by then. Cosatu provincial secretary Tony Ehrenreich said the defence force should be called in to protect farmworkers from armed militias hired by farms. The union federation has blamed the death of Prince Albert Hamlet farmworker Bongile Ndeni on security guards hired to protect farms following the violent protests in which several Ceres vineyards were torched. 26 November 2012 The Times Page 5 Schalk Mouton SA is failing its heritage With their tough stance, effective regulations and legislation against rhino poaching, Namibia and Botswana might soon become Africa's only rhino sanctuaries.

South Africa's rhino farmers have started to export their rhino to these countries for safekeeping. But once they are there it is virtually impossible to get them back. Botswana's President Ian Khama has taken a zero-tolerance approach to rhino poaching. It is believed that he has issued "shoot to kill" orders against poachers but his spokesman, Jeff Ramsay, denied this. "We have at times killed poachers," said Ramsay. "But we certainly don't have a shoot to kill policy." Earlier this year Khama said: "We are using our security forces to protect our rhino and [other] wildlife. They should be warned that coming into Botswana to poach would be a very high risk undertaking. I n this country, wildlife protection is a national priority ." In 1992 Botswana had only 19 white rhino and the black rhino was classified as "locally extinct". In March, it had 140 white rhino, most of them privately owned. Realising that most of his country's GDP is generated through ecotourism, Khama has introduced a hunting ban on public land. "As of January 1 2014, there will be no commercial hunting on public lands," said Ramsay. Mark Prangley, a wildlife capturer, said last week that eight rhino had been moved to Namibia. He would not say where the animals were from. Ramsay said Botswana's strategy was effective because of cooperation between the community, the police and the army. Pelham Jones, chairman of the SA Rhino Owners' Association, said Namibia had a similar approach. "When we take our kids to show them [rhino], all we will be able to say is: 'We used to have them'," said Mark Lappeman, on whose farm eight rhino were killed at the weekend.

26 November 2012 The Times Page 2 Thabo Mokone Zille holds DA rivals at bay The DA camp aligned with party leader Helen Zille retained tight control when its members were re-elected at the party's fifth federal congress, in Boksburg, on the East Rand, yesterday.

DA rebel MP Masizole Mnqasela, who does not agree with Zille's leadership style, failed dismally in his bid to be elected to the high echelons of the party. Mnqasela was trounced by incumbent federal chairman Wilmot James. Mnqasela, who once enjoyed a cosy relationship with Zille, was defeated by what is believed to have been a large margin of votes. The DA would not release the numbers of votes cast, saying that to do so would widen divisions in the party. But DA youth leader Makashule Gana, who is part of the Mnqasela group, was elected as one of three deputy federal chairmen of the party in Western Cape, which it governs. The other deputy federal chairmen are DA national spokesman Mmusi Maimane and MP Anchen Dreyer, both of whom are said to be close to James and Zille. They both hail from Gauteng, which the DA wants to win in the 2014 election. It became apparent late on Saturday night that Mnqasela stood no chance of ousting James when his proposal to amend the DA constitution to allow for the election of a deputy leader was overwhelmingly rejected. He said he would revive his constitutional proposals at the next DA federal congress, in 2014. Mnqasela arrived at the congress with a group of supporters clad in yellow Tshirts bearing his face but they were no more than a sprinkling in a sea of blue DA T-shirts. Zille, re-elected unopposed for a three-year term, appeared to extend an olive branch to Mnqasela and other losing candidates. "Everyone who did not make it today is as much a valued and treasured member of the DA team, with unique attributes to contribute to our progress," she said. Zille said she would use her renewed term in office to continue her drive to force a realignment of South African politics and expand her party's support base. But she said there would be no compromise on the DA's principles of constitutionalism, non-racialism, a properly regulated market economy, an independent and capable state, and redress and reconciliation. "Those are the non-negotiable foundations of the DA and we will not sacrifice them in order to grow our numbers," said Zille.

"We need to get down to work, to show each and every South African that we are in their corner, that they can trust us with their vote and with the future of our country. "As we end this congress we begin our campaign for election in 2014. "It is no coincidence that this congress is in Gauteng," said Zille.

26 November 2012 The Times Page 1 Sibongakonke Shoba and Amukelani Chauke ANC branches revolt ANC members are refusing to accept directives from the top on whom to nominate for party leadership positions, and provincial party branches are divided over nominating Jacob Zuma or Kgalema Motlanthe, his deputy, for the most powerful jobs in politics. When the KwaZulu-Natal ANC held its provincial general council meeting yesterday only Zuma and party secretary-general Gwede Mantashe were nominated unopposed despite an expectation that branches would toe the line and nominate luminaries listed on the slates circulated by Zuma lobby groups. With less than three weeks to go before the party holds its elective conference in Mangaung, a similar trend appears to be unfolding in other provinces party branches are ignoring provincial pronouncements and sticking with their preferred nominees. Zuma wants to be re-elected for another term but Motlanthe - with the backing of the ANC Youth League - is believed to be quietly challenging him. In KwaZulu-Natal a significant number of party branches nominated Motlanthe though he had been removed from the lobbyists' slate and replaced by businessman Cyril Ramaphosa. It emerged at the KwaZulu-Natal provincial general council meeting that about 300 branches in the province nominated Motlanthe as Zuma's deputy. Also nominated for the position was Human Settlements Minister Tokyo Sexwale. But early indications were that Ramaphosa would emerge as the province's preferred choice for the deputy presidency. It also emerged that the province was not united on Premier Zweli Mkhize's nomination as treasurer- general of the party. Some branches nominated Planning Minister Trevor Manuel, Home Affairs Minister Naledi Pandor, Deputy Correctional Services Minister Ngoako Ramatlhodi or treasurergeneral Mathews Phosa.

As Zuma lobbyists were campaigning for national executive committee member Jessie Duarte for the position of deputy secretary-general, some branches expressed support for incumbent Thandi Modise; others nominated Sports Minister Fikile Mbalula and some SA Communist Party general secretary Blade Nzimande. Branches nominated Baleka Mbete to stay on as national chairman, or Modise or KwaZulu-Natal legislature Speaker Peggy Nkonyeni. In Gauteng, the provincial executive committee chose Motlanthe as its preferred presidential candidate. Most branches are said to have heeded the provincial pronouncement but one region, Ekurhuleni, nominated Zuma. Its 54 branches gave Zuma the thumbs up; Motlanthe was nominated by 21. In North West, where the province has endorsed Zuma's second-term bid, divisions are said to be worse. A provincial executive committee member said yesterday that though it was not known if the majority of branches supported Zuma or Motlanthe, the national executive committee's failure to resolve infighting in the province was the determining factor. "What is clear is that 90% of the branches want [North West Premier] Thandi Modise to replace Mbethe as national chairman. "[And] the branches want Mbalula to replace Mantashe as secretary-general. In Eastern Cape, the provincial executive committee said that it wanted Zuma for another term. According to an ANC member in the province, the Sarah Bartman region nominated Motlanthe because of the influence of an ANC Youth League executive member. 27 November 2012 Business Day Page 3 Staff ANC Womens League backs Zuma for president THE African National Congress (ANC) Womens League has nominated President Jacob Zuma to retain his position as ANC leader at the partys national conference in Mangaung. "President Jacob Zuma has never failed us as women in terms of the things that we want to achieve," the leagues president Angie Motshekga told reporters in Johannesburg on Tuesday.

The league chose Cyril Ramaphosa to take over from Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe. Several ANC branches, as well as the ANC Youth League, had nominated Mr Motlanthe for president. He had not yet stated whether he would accept the nominations. Ms Motshekga said because the league had nominated Mr Ramaphosa, it did not mean it was trying to malign Mr Motlanthe. "It is just a choice ... it has nothing to do with him (Motlanthe) as a person. So it is not an anti-Motlanthe vote." The league wanted to retain Baleka Mbete as ANC chairwoman and Gwede Mantashe as secretary-general. Jessie Duarte was nominated as deputy secretary-general and KwaZulu-Natal Premier Zweli Mkhize as treasurer. Ms Motshekga said the league supported Mr Zuma, despite criticism by others of his traditional views. The leagues president, who also served as basic education minister, denied rumours that Mr Zuma had not fired her for the late delivery of textbooks in Limpopo because he needed to secure the leagues vote in Mangaung. 28 November 2012 Business Day Page 1 Carol Paton Ministers pay pledge backfires THE possibility of further labour unrest on Western Cape farms next week was on Tuesday heightened when Labour Minister Mildred Oliphant announced that the minimum wage for farm workers could not be raised before March next year because of legal constraints. This contradicts an undertaking Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Tina Joemat-Pettersson made to striking workers in De Doorns two weeks ago. She promised them that the government would raise the minimum wage by December 4, as farmers had turned down an opportunity to negotiate. Ms Oliphant said in Pretoria on Tuesday that the Basic Conditions of Employment Act, under which the government made wage determinations for certain sectors, allowed for only one such declaration every year.

The last determination for farm workers pay took effect on March 1 and runs until February 28 next year. Ms Oliphant said, while being aware of Ms Joemat-Petterssons statement to workers, her colleague "did not understand the processes" involved. "The deadline of December 4 is practically impossible to achieve, considering limitations as per the act, which is that the minister can only review the sectoral determination once it has been in place for at least 12 months ." The Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) reacted with fury to Ms Oliphants explanation. By saying nothing could be done before March next year, she had undermined negotiations under way between unions and employers, Cosatu argued. This heightened the possibilities for violent conflict. "What we have seen (since the strikes) is farmers arming themselves," said Tony Ehrenreich, Cosatus Western Cape secretary. "Things are going to blow up on December 4 and there will be bloodshed. "The minister is not responding to that." The continuing negotiations in Cape Town involve unions, employer organisations and the Department of Labour. Cosatu and other unions want to secure "an interim arrangement" to raise farm worker wages immediately, but employers have not yet committed to this. Ms Oliphant said she was uncertain the negotiations would yield a result that would avert the resumption of the strike. "I cant guarantee there will be a strike or there wont be a strike." Ms Oliphant appealed to the workers not to use violence or to destroy property, as this would necessitate police action and destroy jobs. " When you destroy property, it is a criminal act." Ms Joemat-Pettersson had told the farm workers they would not suffer any consequences for violent behaviour as they would be shielded from the law. But yesterday Ms Oliphant emphasised criminal behaviour would result in police action and prosecution. It has been said that Ms Joemat-Pettersson was criticised for her comments at last weeks C abinet meeting. Agri Wes-Cape CE Carl Opperman on Tuesday applauded Ms Oliphant. "She has brought some leadership to the debate and expressed accountability to the law and the constitution." 28 November 2012 Business Day

Page 1 Wyndham Hartley MPs walk out as ANC passes secrecy bill THE African National Congress (ANC) in Parliament has once again placed itself on a potential collision course with the countrys highest courts by using its majority to force the "secrecy bill" through while there are still outstanding contested issues. The ANC in the National Council of Provinces ad hoc committee on the Protection of State Information Bill voted for a report that effectively adopts the bill, and agreed that it would be debated in the council on Thursday. Opposition parties were only given the report shortly before Tuesdays committee meeting. In protest, they walked out of the committee and did not participate in the vote on the report. Once the council has approved the bill it will have to return to the National Assembly for the council amendments to be endorsed by the assembly, which has already approved it. Opposition parties and the Right2Know campaign have vowed to continue to fight the bill all the way to the Constitutional Court if necessary. Committee chairman Raseriti Tau (ANC) told a news conference after the meeting that "as the committee we believe we did everything we could to ensure that we build on the work of the National Assembly and ensure that we have a constitutionally sound piece of legislation that is informed by the views of our people and bears resonance to the principles of our democracy". He also launched a stinging attack on opponents of the bill, saying that "the processing of the Info Bill was characterised by half-truths, distorted conflations and mischievous political deportment, especially by those who remain fiercely opposed to the bill". Democratic Alliance MP Alf Lees complained about the late tabling of the committee report. "It was agreed that the committee would meet on Wednesday to table this report; however, the report was only handed to members half an hour after the meeting was due to begin. There is no possible way that committee members would have had sufficient time to examine this report and check that it was in line with rule 211." The Right2Know campaign said despite the changes, the bill still did not fully pass the bodys seven-point freedom test. It said the call for the power to classify to be limited to security departments had largely been met, but that limiting secrecy to strictly defined national security matters had only been partly met.

The call for penalties to not be applied to society at large for disclosure of state secrets had not been addressed by amendments. The call for a public interest defence to be included in the bill had been partly met, which was a significant victory, it added.

28 November 2012 Business Report Page 21 Andres Martinez and Robert Brand Gordhan vows to reduce deficit, regain confidence South Africas history in keeping the budget deficit under control should assure investors the government would reject any populist push within the ruling party, Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan said on Monday. Grant us our fiscal credibility, Gordhan said. Where have we responded to inappropriate pressure from any side in this administration? The ANC, at its elective conference next month, is due to consider proposals to nationalise mines and boost social spending, worsening investors risk perceptions as South Africa struggles with the most violent mining strikes since apartheid ended. Gordhan has pledged to narrow the budget gap to 3.1 percent of gross domestic product in 2015 from 4.8 percent this year and freeze spending increases. The ANC leadership is very aware that it needs to move onto a new trajectory and sustain its credibility both in South Africa and abroad, he said. Gordhans pledge comes as credit rating companies threaten to downgrade the nations debt close to junk. Moodys Investors Service cut the credit rating one level on September 27 and Standard & Poors (S&P) lowered it by the same amount on October 12, maintaining a negative outlook. The cost of protecting South African debt against non-payment for five years using credit default swaps rose 35 basis points to 162 since August 9, the day before a wildcat strike began at Lonmins Marikana mine. Swaps in similarly rated Brazil, Russia and Mexico have declined in the same period. A slump in mining is undermining economic growth as Europes debt crisis cuts exports.

Gordhan said last month in his medium-term budget that the economy would grow 2.5 percent this year, the slowest pace since a 2009 recession. That hampers the governments ability to dent a 25.5 percent jobless rate. The mining industry would probably keep losing jobs in the next 12 months before it started rebounding, Gordhan said. Clearly, we are going to lose ground over the next year, but we will recover, he said. While the government would struggle with its goal of 7 percent economic growth, we are not sitting on our laurels. The Lonmin strike spread to other mines and strikes also disrupted output at farms and transport companies. Investors were ignoring that the ANC-led government produced the first budget surpluses since the 1960s and had kept budget deficits within targets since then, Gordhan said. The ANC conference would not change the governments commitment to meet budget targets and preserve the nations investment rating, he added. Gordhan widened his targets for the fiscal shortfall in his medium-term budget as slower growth curbs tax revenue. The deficit is set to widen to 4.8 percent in the 12 months to March next year and reach 4.5 percent the following year. We need to get our act together as South Africans and restore confidence, Gordhan said.

28 November 2012 Business Report Page 21 Donwald Pressly Situation on farms waiting to explode Governments failure to find a solution to the minimum wage for farmworkers in the Western Cape looks set to blow up in early December, Cosatu warned last night. Tony Ehrenreich, the Western Cape regional secretary of Cosatu, said that the government and Labour Minister Mildred Oliphant had done nothing to avert the crisis. Instead of looking to the current negotiations between employers who are represented by AgriSA, and workers who are represented by Cosatu and others, to find a way to end slave wages on Western Cape farms,

Ehrenreich said that the minister had said the minimum wage determination could only be implemented in April. Oliphant told a media briefing in Pretoria: I hope that it is quite clear that the deadline of December 4 is practically impossible to achieve, considering the limitations as per the Basic Conditions of Employment Act in that the minister can only review the sectoral determination once it has been in place for a period of at least 12 months. Workers want their pay increased from R69 to R150 a day immediately. The date of December 4 had been pencilled in to achieve a settlement, but Ehrenreich said if there was no deal by December 3, then they are going on strike on December 4. The ministers statement doesnt in any way help with the challenges we have to deal with. We all know there are technicalities around sectoral determination but the R69 a day minimum wage has been condemned by everyone in society. Yet the minister says there is no urgency. We should be averting a crisis. Asked if she then expected a flare-up of strike action and possible violence breaking out again in the winelands and table grape region in December, Oliphant said: I cant guarantee that one I cant say that there will be a strike and no strike. It will be guided by the negotiations going on. Pressed on her colleague Agriculture Minister Tina Joemat-Petterssons promise to workers that she would be asking the authorities not to prosecute them for any transgressions of the law related to recent strike violent on farms, Oliphant said: That statement was made by the minister of agriculture I dont know why she made that statement. Let me start [on] whether workers destroyed [property] whether the courts come in or whatever. I cant stand in the way of the justice system. Ehrenreich said that the minister was sounding more like the minister for farmers than a minister for labour. Oliphant appealed instead to those who went on strike not to destroy property. Meanwhile, public hearings are currently taking place as a process towards the reviewing of the sectoral determination, Oliphant reported. The hearings have been scheduled until December 13, after which a report will be compiled. This report will be forwarded to the Employment Conditions Commission on which business, worker representatives and government sit which will then make recommendations advising the labour minister on the amendments to the sectoral determination.

Wouter Kriel, a spokesman for the Western Cape Agriculture Ministry, said that there was no new information regarding any action in the winelands but we are watching the possibility of a strike around December 4.

28 November 2012 Business Report Page 17 Donwald Pressly Ramaphosas candidacy, economic policy Analysts believe it is likely that President Jacob Zuma will be easily re-elected at the ruling partys upcoming elective conference in Mangaung, but a possible upset for the post of deputy president would not necessarily end the current wishy-washy economic policy positions of the ANC. Political economist Steven Friedman said he was not convinced that billionaire businessman Cyril Ramaphosa would leave Shanduka and McDonalds and take up the political reins of deputy president of the ANC. If, however, he did choose to do so, it would not lead to fundamental changes in economic policy. KwaZulu-Natal branches of the ANC selected Ramaphosa as their favourite for deputy president of the party over the past weekend. They represent the biggest block of the ruling partys delegates to Mangaung. If Ramaphosa the countrys richest black African after Patrice Motsepe, according to the Sunday Times is elected to the post, it would put him in line to replace Zuma in 2019. Ramaphosas selection by branches in Zumas heartland province is seen as a snub to Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe, who recently supported the call for a parliamentary debate and a vote of no confidence in the president. The vote and debate were sought by eight opposition political parties but turned down by the ANC parliamentary caucus. Motlanthe backed the debate in his capacity as leader of government business. As the candidate selection process hots up, Friedman said the ANC must be concerned that the infighting within branches and structures would do political damage. In order to minimise this fallout, a likely outcome would be that a slate of candidates, including Motlanthe as deputy and Zuma as president, would be presented to the conference for unopposed selection. This would prevent upsetting the apple cart.

Mike Schussler, the director of economists.co.za, said ANC economic policy positions had been wishy-washy for some time. South Africans spend more time in Cuba looking for investment than they do at home, he said. As ANC deputy president, Ramaphosa would draw a lot of support from business, particularly white business. South Africa is in need of economic confidence it has a lot to do with political leadership, Schussler said. He believed that there would be a confidence dividend. Ramaphosa would underpin the reputations of Planning Minister Trevor Manuel and Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan. However, Efficient Group chief economist Dawie Roodt said, while there were clear benefits [to] having someone like [Ramaphosa] as he is an experienced businessman, he did not believe Ramaphosa would have much of an impact on the ANCs policies. There would probably be efficiency improvements by government departments and better governance, but I am not so sure there would be a change in the things that are done [by the government]. It was unlikely that Ramaphosa would, for example, stop the drift towards greater state involvement in the economy, including mining. He would probably also be able to do little to resolve the impasse over a youth wage subsidy. There will just be a continuation of what we have seen, Roodt maintained. Manufacturing Circle executive director Coenraad Bezuidenhout, whose organisation will table policy positions ahead of Mangaung to influence industrial policy, in particular, said it was hard to say how either Motlanthe or Ramaphosa would influence the government. Ramaphosa is respected more in business circles but Motlanthe is respected in policy circles, Bezuidenhout said. Ramaphosa would not yet say whether he would stand for office at next months party elections, his spokesman, Steyn Speed, told Bloomberg. Nicholas Maweni, the Black Management Forum managing director, said his organisation had made a clear decision on such issues of not involving itself in political matters. We are a professional organisation. We dont want to get involved in the politics of the ruling party. Our members come from various organisations. Biography

Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa (born November 17, 1952) is a lawyer, union leader, politician and businessman. His Shanduka Group owns a stake in mines operated by Lonmin, a venture with Glencore International, and the McDonalds South Africa franchise. He is the chairman of MTN and Bidvest and sits on the board of SABMiller and Standard Bank.

28 November 2012 The Times Page 21 S'Thembiso Msomi African lessons for ANC The current political state of affairs and the growing uncertainty over the direction our country is taking has made an increasing number of patriots wonder where our young nation went wrong, and what it needs to do to return to the correct path. Naturally, this search for answers tends to be inward-looking, focusing mostly on how the decisions and actions of our political elite over the past 18 years drove us to the edge of the precipice we seem to find ourselves on today. But there are those South Africans who have begun looking beyond our borders for answers and possible solutions. These patriots have come to realise that one of our greatest flaws as a young nation has been our failure to learn from our neighbours and many others who have travelled down the path towards a post-colonial society. Our relative wealth often made us dismiss the many lessons the rest of the continent had for us. Our sense of South African exceptionalism, and the notion that our freedom came about as a result of a "miracle", caused many of us to arrogantly think we were "not another African country". Well, as it turns out, we are. To avoid the many pitfalls that hindered the development of so many African states before us, the patriots I am speaking of argue that we have to listen to the voices of those who witnessed the nearcollapse of potentially great nations soon after independence. One such voice is that of renowned Nigerian-born novelist and scholar Chinua Achebe. The US-based intellectual has written extensively about how the dream of freedom and prosperity in Nigeria and other newly independent states quickly turned into a nightmare for the majority of citizens as a result of rampant corruption and abuse of state power.

In a 1983 booklet titled The Problem With Nigeria, Achebe could have easily been talking about South Africa in 2012. Nigeria, he argued, "has been less than fortunate in its leadership". He blamed this "misfortune" on the "seminal absence of intellectual rigour in the political thought" of the country's founding fathers and subsequent leaders. In its place, Achebe continued, was a "tendency to pious materialistic wooliness and self-centred pedestrianism". He then quoted Nigeria's first president, Nnamdi Azikiwe, who once said he planned to "utilise my earned income to secure my enjoyment of a high standard of living and also to give a helping hand to the needy". Another Nigerian founding father, Abafemi Awolowo, had similar ambitions: "I was going to make myself formidable intellectually, morally invulnerable, to make all the money that is possible for a man with brains and brawn to make it in Nigeria". For Achebe, this kind of thinking is "more likely to produce aggressive millionaires than selfless" nation-builders. Can we confidently say, given our current state of affairs, that our nation is not facing the prospects of a "disorderly growth"? With the ANC's Mangaung conference around the corner, some of our political leaders have unfortunately become too defensive - painting everyone who dares point out the weaknesses in the current regime as a "liberal sniper" and even of being "anti-majoritarian". Though it is self-evident that there would always be those who don't readily accept the legitimacy of majority rule, most of those who criticise the ruling political class do so precisely because they seek to see our democracy thrive. All they want is to see our country not go the same sad route followed by many of our neighbours post independence. They know that once a nation has gone down the path of massive corruption, political instability and general lawlessness, it is difficult to get back on track. Instead of viewing criticism as disloyalty and disrespect, those in power should see their critics as important partners in the process of nation-building. The ANC and the government should regard them as true patriots. After all, Achebe, regarded as anti-colonialist by the ANC, describes patriotism thus: "Patriotism is an emotion of love directed by critical intelligence. A true patriot will always demand the highest standards of his country and accept nothing but the best for and from his people. He will be outspoken in condemnation of their short-comings without giving way to superiority, despair or cynicism."

When the public demands answers as to how the government can justify spending R240-million upgrading President Jacob Zuma's private home, the questions are in most cases not out of hatred for Zuma. It is because we expect better from leaders of a liberation movement in power. We assume that such leaders have long learned that the self-enrichment doctrine of the likes of Azikiwe and Awolowo only serves to stunt development. We expect a liberation movement in power to turn to the likes of Tanzania's Julius Nyerere for exemplary and selfless leadership. Nyerere's economic policies were not always the best for his country, but few can question his commitment to building a just and corruption-free Tanzania. Contrary to being "anti-majoritarian", the majority of those who demand that our head of state chooses Nyerere's route over those of his West African counterparts do so precisely because Africa teaches us that a different path to the one followed by too many of our sister countries is possible.