EDITOR – In the past week we've read that Barclays Africa is pulling out of the country, that 36 000 jobs in the mining sector were under threat of being lost, that South African millionaires are down 18 per cent from 46800 in 2014 to 38000 last year, that Anglo-American has been reduced to junk status and that the big mining houses are off-loading many of their assets.
Generally the reasons are the same – a rising level of government regulation in the business sector, a rising number of strikes and labour action over the past few years and low levels of confidence in local law enforcement agencies and highest economic crime levels recorded in the world.
The dichotomy however is that in the same period we have seen developments launched with the Giba Business Estate Industrial Park, which will cost R6 billion to complete, get off the ground, The Oceans Umhlanga Development, which will cost over R3.5 billion to complete, scheduled for launch at the ICC on 3 April, the fact that the Commonwealth Games will be held in Durban in 2022 and numerous other developments by Trapezoid and other major developers valued at billions of rands. Are they all wrong?
South Africans have proved to be very resilient and tolerant people and must not be under-estimated. The world was in recession in 2008 when we witnessed the giant US economy in tatters but then South Africa, under the stewardship of Trevor Manuel, was able to contain the negative impact and we survived. South Africans used passive resistance and sanctions – both peaceful means – to bring down the Goliath National Party government to its knees and thereby rescue us from apartheid and discrimination – without having spilt a drop of blood.
We as South Africans must regain our self-confidence and act as ambassadors of this very beautiful country and to ensure that we prove wrong the “Prophets of Doom”.
Sicario
Durban
