Different policies required – Inst. of Race Relations
Instead of merely criticising the ANC, it is necessary to put forward fundamentally different policies and ideas. This is according to the Institute of Race Relations.
In a statement, the institute said new policies had to be worked on now so that they would be ready for adoption, should those put forward by the ANC fail.
Speaking to the North Eastern Tribune, the institute’s consultant, John Kane-Berman said government and the ruling party had to be among the target market for new ideas and new policies, as “fertile ground” could be found even there. He said, “Shift the debate onto your own ground. Talk not about transformation and redress, or which party ‘delivers’ better, but [about] investment and growth. Don’t be hijacked by the current intellectual fad that the big problem is inequality.”
He added that the inequality that really matters in South Africa is the inequality between people with jobs and those without them.
Kane-Berman urged politicians to use the current concerns about inequality to push the case for jobs. He said, “This brings us back to liberalised labour law and a better climate for investment.” Kane-Berman said it was also essential that business played with a straight bat. He said, “Don’t tell the ANC you like their mining or land reform policy, and then tell your friends the opposite at your next dinner party.”
