Mbeki and the monsters he created

Deputy-president Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka is set to lead an exodus of cabinet ministers who are unhappy with the ANC national executive committee (NEC) decision to axe Mbeki.

Mlambo-Ngcuka has always been the embodiment of this conspiracy against Zuma. After all, she is Bulelani's (the former NPA boss) wife. People forget the reason why we are in this mess at the moment is because Bulelani Ngcuka, probably with the acquiescence of the minister of justice, made the decision of not charging Zuma in the hope that he would go away. Instead of going away, Zuma grew bigger. Zuma is the creation of Bulelani Ngcuka and of Thabo Mbeki himself. Without that kind of cynical behaviour on their behalf... we wouldn't have been in the position we are in today.

Some of the ministers who are expected to quit when Mbeki resigns are his right-hand man, Essop Pahad, Public Works Minister Thoko Didiza, her colleague at public enterprises, Alec Erwin, Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang and Communications Minister Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri.

Goodbye and good riddance, more than half the cabinet ministers should go! They are incompetent and pose direct threats to the wellbeing of the public. Mbeki has allowed his ministers to continue regardless of the havoc they wreak on the nation in their respective portfolios.

Ministers from the departments of correctional services, safety and security, home affairs, justice, labour, health, public enterprises, transport, agriculture, constitutional development and communications, to mention a few, should all be given the boot for the gross mismanagement of major aspects of their portfolios.

For one, it is unfathomable why Mbeki reinstated the sickly and sickening Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang, despite her spectacular failure. Maybe Mbeki kept her on so she can benefit from the substantial pension benefits ministers get on retirement as a reward for her self-denying loyalty to him. Or maybe he did so just to spite the Treatment Action Campaign.

Given the decline of the public sector, Manto is not the only one who should be fired. At least half the cabinet should go. The gross mismanagement of the sector education and training authorities (Setas) is good enough reason for Labour Minister Membathisi Mdladlana to be fired. The continuing debacle around South African Airways is good enough reason to give Public Enterprises Minister Alec Erwin the boot; eNatis is one among many reasons Transport Minister Jeff Radebe should be relieved of his duties.

Marching orders should be given to the Nqakula couple. He has done very little to reduce the unacceptably high levels of crime in SA. His spouse has literally run home affairs into the ground.

I can go on and on about Mbeki's monsters, whose services should be terminated for good reason, but the one who escapes scrutiny is Agriculture Minister Lulama Xingwana. Her failure to stem the farming crisis is astounding. More than 20,000 farmers have left the land, add to that the 3000 farmers murdered since 1994, and the picture looks grim. The government is the biggest single threat to commercial farmers.

As with the doctors who leave in droves, so too, farmers are leaving in great numbers, not least because of land expropriations due to land claims and the lack of support from the government. The Land Bank, which should be helping farmers, gave an R800m loan to Pamodzi Investment Holdings — a nonagricultural investment — whose shareholder includes ANC high-up Kgalema Motlanthe. Can anyone explain who decides that R800m of the Land Bank’s funds go into an investment company in which senior ANC politicians have major shares, bankrupting the bank and leaving it to rely on the state to bale it out? Where is the logic in this? Where are the checks and balances? The former CEO Alan Mukoki, chief financial officer Xolile Ncame and risk manager Godfrey Masilela, earned exorbitant salaries and bonuses while seriously mismanaging the bank. Where are these people?

Why does Mbeki allow such major forms of mismanagement when Jacob Zuma is dragged into court for amounts that pale into insignificance by comparison?