Until race-based legislation is transparent, mistrust won’t dissipate

An innovative way to create jobs for previously disadvantaged people? Or, as the Democratic Alliance claim, a scheme aimed at capturing gated communities for B-BBEE companies connected to cadres”?

The jury is still out on what is really behind Human Settlements Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi’s announcement that community schemes need to be subject to mandatory “economic transformation”.

Kubayi insists mandatory procurement transformation in sectional title complexes, retirement homes, share block companies, homeowners’ associations and housing cooperatives is a must.

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However, Johan Kruger, Community Associations Institute of South Africa vice-chair, cofounder and course facilitator, said there was no cause for alarm as main service providers in many “gated communities” were already B-BBEE-compliant.

Perhaps political analyst Arthur Shopola argued the point best: “SA is turning 30 and you’re still talking about previously disadvantaged groups, disorganised land planning policies. It’s really concerning. Only a select few, in the sense that the people who are benefitting from the current design, are mainly those with political connections, not ordinary South Africans.”

ALSO READ: To insist on B-BBEE policies when trying to save Eskom is not clever

Over the years, government’s track record of adopting race-based legislation has been poor, opening the door for corruption and mistrust. Until it is transparent, this mistrust won’t dissipate anytime soon.