South Africa P.I.G.: UNEMPLOYMENT

Showing posts with label UNEMPLOYMENT. Show all posts

School-leavers fully prepared for unemployment, says Education Department

The national Department of Education has hailed as a “runaway success” more than a decade of outcomes-based education, theoretical cul-de-sacs, wholesale cooking of results and being held hostage by robber-barons posing as teachers’ unions, saying that school-leavers are finally being adequately prepared for a lifetime of unemployment. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXju98j9D4FV_18HpZSa3bpYmArOVzx65tg1TyQVEEpG9I9Fi1wk6jcGqS92lVMCXsWHNVyOPik-ArZDrKB3pSkyX92n873wZKr9KRa0lx7ouAyrTVXNWrFsyk9CckKcbHv4XeS0Xgdef6/s1600/DrunkStudents6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="462" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXju98j9D4FV_18HpZSa3bpYmArOVzx65tg1TyQVEEpG9I9Fi1wk6jcGqS92lVMCXsWHNVyOPik-ArZDrKB3pSkyX92n873wZKr9KRa0lx7ouAyrTVXNWrFsyk9CckKcbHv4XeS0Xgdef6/s640/DrunkStudents6.jpg" width="640" /></a></div> This morning Suxtobiyu Khumalo, head of the department’s Committee for Planning Potential Education Outcomes That Result Potentially from Planning By Committee, said that South Africa could now consider itself a world leader in providing school-leavers with the critical lack of non-skills they needed to be competitively uncompetitive in today’s over-saturated unemployment market. “Like the academically disinclined 22-year-old in Matric, our motto is: If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again,” said Khumalo. “You know, like the national education policy for the last five years: do the same thing every year and hope for exponentially improving results, and when those don’t happen, do the same thing again, except this time make disappointed comments in the Sunday newspapers before you get redeployed as Deputy Minister of Forestry.” According to Khumalo, the Committee’s research had concluded that traditional education was too focussed on equipping students for productive, professional careers. “Everybody knows that unemployment is a growth industry at the moment, and if you’re going to get in on the ground floor – or in the gutter, where many of our finest graduates now find themselves – you’ve got to plan accordingly.” He said that as a result, most schoolchildren in South Africa were now placed in “post-school simulation scenario role-play simulations – did I already say ‘simulation’?” “We provide a totally realistic model of their careers as unemployed people,” he explained. “They sit in dark, overcrowded rooms, and are sporadically shouted at, ordered around or molested by people in leadership positions.” He said many graduates had written to him, often in soot scribbled on UIF forms, thanking him for preparing them for the realities of modern South Africa. “At least I think they were thanking me,” he said. “Or maybe they were asking for medical attention and emergency rations. That’s the great thing about Outcomes-based Education: you can totally make up your own mind about stuff.” <a href="http://www.hayibo.com/school-leavers-fully-prepared-for-unemployment-says-education-department/">Source</a>

School-leavers fully prepared for unemployment, says Education Department

The national Department of Education has hailed as a “runaway success” more than a decade of outcomes-based education, theoretical cul-de-sa...

4:11 PM

Our national anthem ought to be “Send in the Clowns”.

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXXyDAcFu_RhBLv54i4oPAdaAjlXu8Mor9aanHatGaQ7cPMyIj-7cAtSBJ7-VbW-NPy3YsZK-khdxJdL3peCP2okvdnXQLKjd-h7cVfVoYsIlv7JLxrgCpuxlsmGplKCq9_huv_L6iJBrl/s1600/failing+SA" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="441" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXXyDAcFu_RhBLv54i4oPAdaAjlXu8Mor9aanHatGaQ7cPMyIj-7cAtSBJ7-VbW-NPy3YsZK-khdxJdL3peCP2okvdnXQLKjd-h7cVfVoYsIlv7JLxrgCpuxlsmGplKCq9_huv_L6iJBrl/s640/failing+SA" width="640" /></a></div> By David Bullard These days I find myself standing back , shaking my head and having a quiet chuckle at the many economic problems South Africa faces. I’ve even been known to silently mouth the words “told you so”. I realise this is not a good thing but I think it’s got something to do with age and the fourteen odd years I spent “farting against thunder” as a newspaper columnist. I was re-reading my first book, <a href="http://www.newstime.co.za/column/DavidBullard/SA_is_the_Amy_Winehouse_of_global_economies/9/3735/">Out to Lunch</a>, which was published almost ten years ago, and what I was writing about then I am still writing about today. Nothing has changed. We have learnt nothing and we still seem set on a course of self destruction. We are the Amy Winehouse of global economies. Of course, pointing this sort of thing out inevitably leads to one being labelled a “racist” which is the predictable reaction one can expect from people too stupid to debate important issues. Launch into an attack on our government’s economic non-performance and you’re bound to be accused of wanting the black man to fail/not believing that the black man is entitled to wealth/not having made the transition to a new South Africa etc etc. It’s the biggest load of horse shit you can imagine but what more can you expect when first world thinking has to co-exist with the majority of a country still stuck in the middle ages? Because, let’s be brutally honest here, we may be the Cradle of Mankind but the early settlers certainly didn’t stumble across anything approaching a sophisticated and developed society (over to Biko Lives). After all, why invent the wheel when you don’t plan on going anywhere? However, the confusion comes when a country like South Africa pretends that it wants to play with the big boys in the global playground but doesn’t have the stomach for it. Our latest and, to date, most embarrassing example is the way our government is treating the Walmart deal. Having eventually given a qualified go ahead for the US retailing giant to invest in SA it seems as though our Economic Development (sic) Minister Ebrahim Patel has changed his mind and now wants to put a permanent stain on Walmart’s reputation. This means that, even if the deal does come off, it will always have a taint. One wonders how a buffoon like Patel can hold such an important position but nothing surprises me these days. Most of those holding high office in this country I wouldn’t trust to put bread in a toaster without fucking it up. Our national anthem ought to be “Send in the Clowns”. I heard on the radio last week that foreign investment had fallen 70% in the past year. Is it any wonder when we are so hostile to anyone who comes knocking on our door keen to do business? But is there any point in any of us suffering high blood pressure because of this? Absolutely not. The best course is to hedge your bets by getting money offshore and to significantly reduce the amount you pay to the taxman. If you have a small business here then wind it down before it gets seized, taxed or legislated out of existence. Why would anyone want to deal with a lazy and uncommitted unionised workforce and a government openly hostile to capitalism? Forget all the bullshit about the ANC wanting to create jobs. That’s just a guilt trip being laid on the dwindling minority of the economically active. The government’s task is to create an environment conducive to job creation and economic prosperity. They’re clearly too dumb to understand that so why on earth would private enterprise want to try and help when it’s quite clear that the government is going to screw them over? If you run a hospital you tend to put people with medical experience and knowledge in key positions. If you run a university, hopefully you would appoint well respected academics (although that clearly doesn’t apply at some of our Universities so it’s not a great example) as heads of faculties. When you run a country you would hope that people who have some experience or understanding of the business world would be given key cabinet positions but that doesn’t happen. Instead we have a clutch of luxury car driving halfwit Commies with lunatic ideas who simply cannot grasp the fact that we are sailing merrily on to failed nation status and are deaf to advice. Link: <a href="http://www.newstime.co.za/" style="color: #0e774a;" title="Http://www.newstime.co.za">http://www.NewsTime.co.za</a>

Our national anthem ought to be “Send in the Clowns”.

By David Bullard These days I find myself standing back , shaking my head and having a quiet chuckle at the many economic problems South Afr...

4:01 AM

10 Most Jobless Countries

<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0RN6u64_cglJN0Brh9e2NROmWSzqjOcc_knyyfdUBQ7SQVpzJA2PwzLQ9CRxECF3ji6oXmxyRi3u2bKbrq9alzy-to8DGwyeEisXhNgnnMPwDOnJNcc72QQFmh9Stnv8P2-ydWO7p_j2u/s1600/bigfoot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" r6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0RN6u64_cglJN0Brh9e2NROmWSzqjOcc_knyyfdUBQ7SQVpzJA2PwzLQ9CRxECF3ji6oXmxyRi3u2bKbrq9alzy-to8DGwyeEisXhNgnnMPwDOnJNcc72QQFmh9Stnv8P2-ydWO7p_j2u/s400/bigfoot.jpg" width="330" /></a></div>UN report about unemployment 205 million people were unemployed in 2010 (according to a UN Report) and that number is not expected to improve this year – which leaves global economic growth on the back foot. Europe, Africa and South America’s labour markets are struggling to recover from the 2008 financial crisis – as people under 25 face youth unemployment rates at a record level of 21 percent. Here are the 10 most jobless countries: 1. South Africa: 25.3 percent unemployment The problem: Poor education leading to high youth unemployment. Though the government has tried to create more jobs, one in four people in South Africa is unemployed – and jobs created by government programs only last 4-6 days. 2. Croatia: 18.8 percent unemployment The problem: The government’s initiatives for job growth have failed – and 141,000 jobs lost in the last 2 years. $13 billion of new infrastructure projects announced by Croatia are expected to combat the problem. 3. Lithuania: 17.8 percent unemployment The problem: High corporate taxes and large deficit – in effort to control the credit crisis, Lithuania imposed higher corporate taxes which only lead to more companies shutting down. 4. Latvia: 14.3 percent unemployment The problem: Even lower unemployment rates outside the capitol in the Riga region where unemployment can soar up to 22.3 percent. Their government job programs have been troubled and education budgets cut. 5. Ireland: 13.8 percent unemployment The problem: Known as the face of EU economic problems, Ireland’s real estate bubble resulted in a banking sector collapse. Unemployment went up by 10 percent and is unlikely to pass due to an exodus of people leaving the country. 6. Slovakia: 12.5 percent unemployment The problem: Up and raising, the unemployment rate in Slovakia is expected to rise until March, when job market reforms are expected to have kicked in. 7. Greece: 12.4 percent unemployment The problem: 192,000 people have lost their jobs in October 2009 and he economy shrank in 2010 by 4.2 percent with construction, retail and tourism taking the biggest hit. 8. Poland: 12.3 percent unemployment The problem: Youth, women and long-term unemployed struggle to find jobs. The country has not been able to control its unemployment rate since it moved on from communism 20 years ago. 9. Colombia: 11.3 percent unemployment The problem: 2.5 million out of work although financial and natural gas sectors are performing well. 10. Turkey: 11.2 percent unemployment The problem: Export drops in automotive, linens and textile sectors. Although women’s employment prospects are improving by 0.9 percent (to 28 percent) the year before.

10 Most Jobless Countries

UN report about unemployment 205 million people were unemployed in 2010 (according to a UN Report) and that number is not expected to impro...

4:05 PM

Why the poor are a pain in the arse for politicians

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge6F5Alm8S8pMgmMsOOeHkqZB7DvPgVpMKK71HOlllxEM5o2L9PlRqJdV6y_Q7sxncwWMjaPSKmcjSUbEZWNMU1g_CJBtTucG_npe884vyMhmwQFo46neF9ulVBVV5vkcvB9pKuwfZNuM_/s1600/sheeple1+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="327" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge6F5Alm8S8pMgmMsOOeHkqZB7DvPgVpMKK71HOlllxEM5o2L9PlRqJdV6y_Q7sxncwWMjaPSKmcjSUbEZWNMU1g_CJBtTucG_npe884vyMhmwQFo46neF9ulVBVV5vkcvB9pKuwfZNuM_/s400/sheeple1+copy.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> With local elections looming we are bound to hear all sorts of nonsense about how the government should be uplifting the “economically disadvantaged” (the current SA euphemism for the poor) and how our finance ministers have failed to deliver to the poor in 17 years of ANC government. Deliver what though? Jobs, free money, hope, food vouchers? Surely that's the old give a hungry man a fish and he'll be hungry again tomorrow argument? What can you possibly give the poor of South Africa that would provide them with more than a faint hope of a better life? The government had the brilliant idea of starting a national lottery which would encourage people to gamble what little money they had on a ticket which could change their lives for ever. Very few lives have been changed. In between elections the poor get very little mention and there is good reason for that. Firstly, they are not particularly economically active which means that they don't count. Let me give you an African wildlife metaphor. When an impala is born and is found to be weak the rest of the herd don't run around starting action groups with like minded caring impala to protect the weak of the herd. The poor lame hobbling impala is left to fend for itself and it's inability to run faster than other impala of a similar age is just part of the process of natural selection. The lame and the sick end up on the dinner menu of the predators. And it's not all rosy for the predators either. If a lion cannot hunt for himself he is reduced to scrounging the scraps from other lion kills. The chances are that he will be driven away by younger healthier lions and will become thinner and thinner before dropping from sheer starvation and exhaustion and providing food for the vultures. Who said it was a fair world? We are the only species that protect the weak with such enthusiasm and the result has had a substantial effect on the quality of the gene pool. The second reason the poor don't matter very much in the yawning gaps between elections is that they don't have much money, don't throw great parties and can't chuck the juicy bone of a tender deal to hungry politicians. Julius (Kiddie Amin) Malema may talk about improving the lot of the poor and nationalising the mines so that ordinary South Africans can share in all that wealth underground but we all know this is nothing but political bullshit. Anyway, when has a nationalised industry ever benefited the people (with the exception of oil in Norway)? They usually end up costing the taxpayer a fortune and the reason for that is very simple; politicians don't make good businessmen. No, like most politicians the world over, Julius and his mates want to hang out with the sort of people who can settle the bill for all that Johnnie Blue at the end of the evening. So why waste time on the poor? If the ANC were really serious about doing something for the poor in South Africa they would start an economic education scheme. This would point out there is no such thing as free money. Money has to be earned and that is the only way most people are able to survive. The gap between rich and poor is no different than the gap between the successful and unsuccessful hunter. The rich are, by definition, smarter, better informed, better connected, more willing to take risks and as a result are more productive members of society. It's no accident that the poor suck life's hind tit....they are always waiting for handouts. If the government, by some miracle, created five million jobs in the next ten years what sort of jobs do you think they would be? Would they provide opportunities for the poor to make serious money and change their family's lives for ever? Or would they be crappy, low paid jobs that would provide just enough to live on? Where's the dignity in that? If the poor really think that the ANC are there to provide a better life for them then they are probably too dumb to realise that they are nothing but gullible electoral cannon fodder. The chances of things ever changing for these wretched people is zero. If it did the ANC would no longer have a desperate constituency to go to for votes every five years.  <a href="http://www.blogger.com/columnist/DavidBullard/9">David Bullard</a>

Why the poor are a pain in the arse for politicians

With local elections looming we are bound to hear all sorts of nonsense about how the government should be uplifting the “economically disad...

3:01 PM

SA’s "Tunisia Day" Our 'Burning Man revolution'

Only a matter of time before the hand grenade explodes. The African National Congress is in a furious huff because Moeletsi Mbeki posited that a Tunisia-style revolt could happen in South Africa<img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5580043353490522466" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEeTG-nPiGEZ5CPEkpuwUM5lNd06khMZ_dlvhSSt1U94URznRpsQakEwKkhIfnn0pbzK8LE1G3XXJQI482SC034eJo3O757_xQlzYGZj6G9H-eul54dxeCWjaxa2B_OmEk3u23vC8Z8dGX/s400/tunisia-protest.bmp" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 281px; CURSOR: hand" /> The Tunisian Revolt - is it contagious?As the flames of revolution and dissent spread from Tunisia across the Maghreb and into the Middle East it is natural for everybody to take a look at their own countries and wonder whether or not they are next. Bahrain, Jordan, Yemen, Algeria, Libya and even parts of Iraq have seen uprisings. There are tremendous rumblings in Iran and Saudi Arabia. No country, it seems, is safe. The question of “who is next” has sprung up as far afield as England (struggling painfully with a buckled welfare state) and America. As the people of Ermelo and the South African Transport and Allied Workers Union took to the streets, even as the memory of last year’s public servant’s strike and the riots in Mpumalanga lingers – it seems natural to consider the likelihood of revolution in South Africa. Political analyst <a href="http://www.businessday.co.za/articles/Content.aspx?id=133902">Moeletsi Mbeki reckons</a> it will be around 2020, when the industrialisation phase that China is undergoing ends. A slowdown in Chinese industrialisation will lead to a drop in demand for Africa’s commodities, leading to a drop in prices, which will eat into the GDP of commodity-rich countries like South Africa. At that point, South Africa’s welfare state will collapse and the poor will revolt against a government that is no longer able to feed them, predicts Mbeki. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7KPsWvhjXV1JwhGTip8mj2kXSoRTJCSs7oJBNFNJV2LL-FDPZbQ0Y1zS8IWhQOa6khe-BwfYVtiQElrpmvhhy-fa60Dg_h4fZLFb6PhfmDd8VNU2FxJYNM96z9LWmDSK4oLadNw5YbPtJ/s1600/tunisia-game+over.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5580044996071230914" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7KPsWvhjXV1JwhGTip8mj2kXSoRTJCSs7oJBNFNJV2LL-FDPZbQ0Y1zS8IWhQOa6khe-BwfYVtiQElrpmvhhy-fa60Dg_h4fZLFb6PhfmDd8VNU2FxJYNM96z9LWmDSK4oLadNw5YbPtJ/s400/tunisia-game+over.jpg" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 265px; CURSOR: hand" /></a> The ANC is <a href="http://www.businessday.co.za/articles/Content.aspx?id=134436">not amused</a> in the least by this. ANC spokesman Brian Sokutu told BusinessDay, “Our fledgling constitutional democracy, which continues to make inroads in redressing decades of apartheid, cannot be equated with tyranny or stagnation in our growing economy, as Moeletsi insinuates.” The peanut gallery also had something to say. The ANC Youth League issued a statement of its own, saying, “The Tunisia-like protests will not happen in South Africa, because the ANC government has made profound progress in placing institutions, structures and virtues of democracy, which allow the people of South Africa to freely and fairly choose public representatives after every five years. “Besides entrenched democracy in South Africa, the ANC government is at the forefront of the attack in the battle against poverty, unemployment and starvation. The ANC government has since 1994 provided basic services to the people of South Africa, including water, electricity, sanitation, houses, roads, access to free education, healthcare, safety and security and many other basic social services needed for sustainable livelihoods,” the ANCYL statement said. Which is completely beside the point. Moeletsi Mbeki was referring to the fact that the ANC is using the welfare state to keep the poor at bay, not insinuating that we don’t have free and fair elections in South Africa, or a police force which kicks down dissidents’ doors at night. “People don’t eat democracy,” Mbeki is reported to have retorted. But since Mbeki raises several important points, which the ANC has so spectacularly failed to address, it is worth exploring the matter a bit. The government has been able to provide people with critical resources because of an erstwhile booming economy, aided greatly by high commodity prices. But it has largely failed to diversify the economy and, should the massive commodity price slump occur in 2020, we will be in serious trouble. In all likelihood the welfare state would collapse. But at no point in his analysis does Mbeki allude to the fact that South Africa, unlike Tunisia or Egypt, is actually a democracy where people get to vote out the parties they don’t like. We are seeing the trend towards that today. The ANC has already lost Western Cape. The people did not revolt there, they simply voted for another party. Its time to remind people that they need to go out on 18 May and Vote. It's our chance to end high unemployment, corruption, rising prices and, and ... Do it at the ballot box! Last Weekend to Register to Vote May 18! 2011 SA Municipal Elections- Register to vote this weekend 5-6 March There are local elections all over the country on May 18 and voters like you are going to make a difference. Every single vote counts, especially in the municipal elections. Make full use of the last voter registration this weekend, 5-6 March 2011 to ensure that your names are on the voters roll.

SA’s "Tunisia Day" Our 'Burning Man revolution'

Only a matter of time before the hand grenade explodes. The African National Congress is in a furious huff because Moeletsi Mbeki posited th...

4:12 PM

State plans to control job market

Proposed law could see state recruiting the jobless IF THE GOVERNMENT has its way, private companies will no longer be able to hire employees without going through a government database of unemployed South Africans. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhadXGpci0cTbWkCHyC0CGrfxizx3JKtFhyArVHCz1ECRFbw240Ker-FtdgFgqpFBRrVpIfCQcICPAHqjvLhPvbrfLpJeKjjfeYQMeY_maTJnDGdOn27chT7_l1Gj-I-7flO17o2PptO-Hp/s1600/job-seekers.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5573344217918665250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhadXGpci0cTbWkCHyC0CGrfxizx3JKtFhyArVHCz1ECRFbw240Ker-FtdgFgqpFBRrVpIfCQcICPAHqjvLhPvbrfLpJeKjjfeYQMeY_maTJnDGdOn27chT7_l1Gj-I-7flO17o2PptO-Hp/s400/job-seekers.jpg" style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 278px; CURSOR: hand" /></a>Failure to do so could result in heavy fines for companies that don’t comply. This is according to the Employment Services Bill, gazetted in December. According to the bill, the government intends to establish a public employment service whose task would be to create a database of all unemployed people in the country. The employment service would then link job seekers to companies that have vacancies. The bill also stipulates that various employers would have to register all their vacancies with the public employment service within 14 days. The government would then be expected to provide those companies with the names of possible candidates to fill those posts. If these companies failed to meet the requirements, they would need to provide written reasons for not appointing candidates from the database. The bill also proposes conditional employment of foreigners. If a company employs a foreigner, it would have to prove to the public employment service that it was unable to find a suitable local candidate. The government has also vowed to deal with recruitment agencies that charge a fee to job seekers. It has proposed that all agencies be registered or face punitive measures for failing to do so. They also want agencies to charge employers instead. In addition, the bill provides for temporary workers to be paid at the same rate as permanent workers. Labour law expert Johan Botes, of the law firm Cliffe Decker Hofmeyer, slammed the proposed bill. He said it was aimed at allowing the government to run the affairs of the private sector. “The government must allow the business sector to run its affairs while they continue to govern the country,” he said. Government departments in South Africa were notoriously inefficient and the labour department was a prime example of poor service delivery. The current employment assistance offered by the department, namely the Employment Services South Africa (ESSA) project, a grossly under-utilised system seldom used by the private sector, was a case in point.

State plans to control job market

Proposed law could see state recruiting the jobless IF THE GOVERNMENT has its way, private companies will no longer be able to hire employee...

2:09 PM

SA Govt repeating past mistakes...Again, Still, Whatever!

Govt's <strike>TOP-10</strike> TOP-15 serious blunders that caused extreme alarm in 2010 <ol><li>The water crisis,<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQZdguT7C2IEhpOcuMhTZM-JkOa5CzZX5etWtx12zwtksfhi3ZTd1FTB6Z_VOBsCIOEK_PXlZMP2e7E5mdH1k6_IQ4sCUtjbA4gALNAZRZF1x_M09U6DcisZg18Iu8-YeylPRATyo5Oh86/s1600/anc-logo.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5556269021058784578" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQZdguT7C2IEhpOcuMhTZM-JkOa5CzZX5etWtx12zwtksfhi3ZTd1FTB6Z_VOBsCIOEK_PXlZMP2e7E5mdH1k6_IQ4sCUtjbA4gALNAZRZF1x_M09U6DcisZg18Iu8-YeylPRATyo5Oh86/s320/anc-logo.jpg" style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 256px; CURSOR: hand" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIGGWfVaUkOdaDCWdD3_Zm5sJgnwnLGMkmD1KxE6zUp5T95x3tQf5X54TzfZI3Q4Qu70WxQCUe0qauHutgMF8fVDHEGeAXWBf9ocW0aFsXaxUOeB28Yug8FLAPyASciTKV4hKlWiifR99g/s1600/anc-logo.jpg"></a></li><li>Misappropriation of state funds, </li><li>Efforts to gag the media,</li><li>The ongoing fiascos at semi-government institutions, </li><li>The government's handling of youth matters, </li><li>Road maintenance and potholes, </li><li>South Africa's military readiness, </li><li>CRIME, </li><li>The widespread housing scandal </li><li>Labour problems, </li><li>Hosting of the R69m World Youth Festival by the NYDA; </li><li>Poor service delivery from parastatals; </li><li>The failure to create sufficient jobs; </li><li>A housing scandal involving 2 000 government officials, </li><li>The failure to crush South Africa's "internationally feared" criminals.</li></ol>***Corruption is present in most of the aboveWater crisis state's worst blunder 1. Water crisis Government's denial of the worsening water problems in South Africa in 2010 must rate as one of its more serious blunders. In the same year that Trevor Manuel, minister in the presidency, shrugged off as "ridiculous" predictions that toxic mine water could seep out at various locations in Gauteng before long, government for the first time ever acknowledged its failure to maintain municipal sewerage plants all over the country. The latter issue is a matter of grave concern. According to government's so-called Green Drop report for 2009, only 32 of the 449 plants tested managed Green Drop status. (Only 449 of the country's 852 plants were tested.) This means that millions of litres of insufficiently purified water daily find its way into our rivers. In a country afflicted by a scarcity of water, a fast-growing population and ageing infrastructure, our water predicament has now become a ticking timebomb. 2. Youth One of the most expensive government blunders without a doubt was the 17th World Youth Festival presented by the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) in December. The festival cost almost R69 million, of which R29 million was funded by the treasury. In view of the current unemployment rate of 35,8% among South Africans in the age group 15 to 34 (according to the narrow definition of unemployment), such extravagance flies right in the face of our youth's aspirations. However, a critical 2010 blunder with more far-reaching consequences flows from government's continuing inability to solve our nation's education woes. The matric pass rate for 2009 was 60,6%. Owing to the prolonged teachers' strike in particular, the 2010 figure could hardly be an improvement on last year. Still failing to prepare our youth for the labour market, the education system generally produces merely mediocre school-leavers. 3. Misappropriation Here are just some of this year's shocking blunders regarding state spending: <ul><li>The disclosure in November that the bodyguards of the leader of the ANC Youth League, Julius Malema, had already cost the taxpayer more than R880 000. </li><li>In October it was divulged that R3,7 million had been transferred from the South African Police Service (SAPS) budget to pay for the residence of police chief General Bheki Cele. </li><li>Some R130 million was spent by government and several semi-government institutions on tickets for various matches in the Soccer World Cup Tournament. </li><li>In November the auditor-general revealed numerous government departments' "irregular" spending of approximately R2,3 billion (i.e. spending incurred outside stipulated guidelines). </li></ul>As to the management of municipal funds the picture is bleak indeed. Financial statements of South African municipalities published by the treasury disclosed that consumers of municipal services were overdue by more than R62 billion at the end of September 2010 - with close to R3,4 billion due by the state itself. 4. Potholes keep government stumbling While South African roads face a construction backlog of almost R100 billion, motorists are spending some R50 billion annually to have pothole-related damage to their vehicles repaired. The maintenance of our secondary roads in particular has become a veritable nightmare thanks to the fact that, to a large extent, road maintenance has simply stopped. The Automobile Association of South Africa (AA) issued a warning in October that our roads were fast becoming irreparable. The AA conducted a study in 2008 by measuring road conditions on a scale of zero (worst condition) to 100 (best condition), according to the so-called visible-condition index (VCI). The index dropped to 46 in 2008, as against 65 in 1998. Minister of transport, S'bu Ndebele, admitted in October that bad roads increase the risk of accidents. 5. Media tribunal It would seem that a transparent society, investigative journalism and media freedom are to make way for more corruption and deeper murkiness. This scenario, among others, awaits South Africa if the proposed media tribunal and the Protection of Information Bill were to be adopted. Already experts are describing eventual state control of the media as a disaster. The proposed legislation is aimed at, among others, empowering the authorities to classify information and to prosecute contravening opinionmakers such as journalists and editors. It is highly ironical that the ruling party who clamoured so vociferously for the freedom of speech during apartheid should now be trying to convince South Africans that a free press was indeed a threat to democracy! 6. SANDF Disturbing rumours were again doing the rounds this year that the defence force was nowhere near fighting trim. The low morale in the SANDF is alleged to be very serious; in fact, in November an MP warned that it could even endanger state security. The publishing of a comprehensive report on the combat status of the SANDF is awaited with apprehension. 7. Semi-government institutions Many semi-government institutions are continuing their negative tendencies. Some of these institutions are hampered by thousands of vacancies, weakening their service delivery. In May 2010 Transnet had some 4 500 vacancies, Eskom had 1 200, while SAA lacked 600 workers. Solidarity cited affirmative action as a probable contributing factor behind the vacancies, with service delivery its ultimate victim. 8. Labour Government's target of creating five million new jobs in the next decade is commendable; however, if this initiative was not left to the private sector, it cannot succeed. The failure of the Essa project (Employment Services South Africa) seems inevitable. Essa is a centralised database which is supposed to match jobseekers and employers. Since its inception four years ago, only 2% of the more than 1,2 million jobseekers have been placed successfully. Close to 170 000 jobseekers were registered in 2007/08, of whom only 3% were successful. More than 420 000 people were registered in 2008/09 - the lucky ones came to only 3,5%. And a meagre 1% of the more than 630 000 people registered in 2009/10 are now employed. 9. Housing scandal The housing corruption involving some 2 000 government officials is one of the most disgraceful public sins of 2010. Minister of human settlements, Tokyo Sexwale, said in August this year that syndicates selling and leasing government housing were to be investigated. Numerous government officials, notably in Gauteng, North West and KwaZulu-Natal, are allegedly benefiting underhand from these deals. The authorities' housing promises pose another fiasco. Sexwale announced in April this year that the housing backlog even exceeded the backlog in 1994: the figure has swelled from 1,5 million in 1994 to 2,1 million at present. Meanwhile the need for housing is growing daily; the number of informal settlements has already reached the 2 700-mark, of which at least 70 are inhabited by white people in shanty towns. 10. Crime and law enforcement The authorities are still failing to crush South Africa's internationally feared criminals, despite a growing police force. According to data released by SAPS in September, 16 849 murders, 68 332 sex-related crimes and 64 670 muggings (robberies with violence) were recorded as at 31 March 2010 when the 2009/10 financial year ended. Residential and business burglaries increased by 1,9% and 4,4% respectively. Experts are moreover concerned that a growing percentage of crime victims no longer even bother to report the misdeeds they have suffered. And in March it was revealed that one out of three police stations lacked suitable victim support facilities. Successful policing by police members with a sense of duty is further hindered by affirmative action as well as poor law enforcement and ill-considered strategic planning. Solidarity emphasised the gravity of the crisis, saying that extensive and permanent damage had already been done and that merely pulling up its socks is not good enough for 2011.

SA Govt repeating past mistakes...Again, Still, Whatever!

Govt's TOP-10 TOP-15 serious blunders that caused extreme alarm in 2010 The water crisis, Misappropriation of state funds, Efforts to ...

3:03 PM

SA – Big Question Time

By Iain Robertson South Africa is at a tipping point. We have a Government that seems to have lost the plot. It is fighting paper tigers in the media while we head towards an economic Armageddon with increasing rapidity. The rapacious plundering of the economy by the not-so-good in Government, their relatives and friends looks more and more like rats deserting the sinking ship. <img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5538403977150930290" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib_F56Lvm1MSgYMWXq9-RcE6Tm9jF1XKjpkXRWN8t2nr6leXwP2JUnmK7_gyyqwoMPAVZAaS1OLc4SFTS3m4fMx5YzAIBcuFe2ovHzsQs_WlPZ_yfTCw1eRXvaPoXdZqwuVCg8zDYYUivB/s400/anc-fail.jpg" style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 122px; CURSOR: hand" />But the real story is even worse. We do not have the skills to turn our economy around, we do not have an education system that can provide us with the skilled people in sufficient time, and even if we did, we do not have the warm bodies of a suitable age to receive that education. Point 1 – a people crisis: <ul><li>A population of 52 Million or so, plus an estimated 10 Million legal and illegal immigrants. </li><li>The official unemployment rate is given as around 25%. Unisa calculate 45%, and the advertising industry use a figure closer to 65%. </li><li>About 20 Million people are dependent on welfare grants </li><li>5.7 Million people are HIV positive, dying at a rate of about 1000 per day, mostly in the economically active 15-45 age group. </li><li>Average life expectancy has tumbled from 60 in 1990 to 40 today </li><li>Disengaged, functionally illiterate, innumerate and uneducable individuals in youth and middle age </li><li>By 2015, 32% of all children will be AIDS orphans </li><li>There are about 5.3Million registered taxpayers, of whom 1 Million or so are Government employees, thereby just moving tax income from one pocket to another. Of the remaining 4Million or so, about 1 Million provide 75% of the tax income. According to Mike Schussler and others, an unsustainable economy.</li></ul>Point 2 – an environment crisis <ul><li>Dysfunctional electricity reticulation and generation </li><li>An unmaintained and disintegrating physical infrastructure. Most roadway bridges have not been maintained for the last 15 years </li><li>Less than 5% of the sewage plants in the country (around 30 out of 930) operate correctly </li><li>Just over 10% of all municipalities (30 out of 280) can provide clean and safe drinking water </li><li>Water with the acidity of lemon juice will flood central Johannesburg and poison the Gauteng environment in about 18 months time, the legacy of gold mining.</li></ul>Point 3 – a governance crisis <ul><li>A wholesale loss of skills and expertise from 1994 onwards as experienced and competent civil servants were replaced with deployed ANC cadres. A simple replacement, no handover or skills transfer </li><li>The concept of “a fair day’s work for a fair day’s pay” has gone out of the window. </li><li>Relocation (theft) of state funds by tampering with contracts, tenders and pay-offs has become an acceptable secondary income stream </li><li>The result - large areas of society are governed by thieves and incompetents</li></ul> What is suddenly different ? While the gradual erosion of government could be hidden a facade could be maintained, but as soon as the electricity crisis hit, followed by the admission of a forthcoming sewage and water crisis, the inadequacies in governance were literally brought home to citizens. Questions were then asked about missing RDP homes, RDP homes that fell apart after a very short period, and the general appalling level of service delivery. The Emperor then had no clothes. The outcome of the realisation that governance is failing is already being seen. Self-help is now the order of the day as citizens bypass formal government structures that are unable to deliver. Communities repair roads themselves, pay for additional teaching and medical staff in their schools and hospitals. Black communities are demonstrating and physically attacking local and national government buildings. Voices are arising in all communities that they are paying at least twice for everything, once as tax, and a second time to provide paid-for services that are not delivered. At some point very soon, they will stop paying the first time and let the Revenue know in no uncertain terms. We are now beginning to see Government react. It is trying to close down avenues of information, by preventing the media reporting on it, by attempting to close off areas of the Internet, and by adopting the philosophy that everything is secret unless deemed otherwise. Local Government is becoming increasingly dysfunctional and irrelevant. Where do we go from here ? Towards an increasingly autocratic society as we slip into the “African” model of a polarised economy of an ultra rich minority and a subsistence level majority. Unless something changes that is what will happen. It all depends on how we manage our Human Capital as individuals and as small businesses. Without adequate intellectual and human capital in ourselves, our businesses and our customers, we will not be able to regenerate our society. The next year is critical.

SA – Big Question Time

By Iain Robertson South Africa is at a tipping point. We have a Government that seems to have lost the plot. It is fighting paper tigers in ...

12:39 PM

Eskom importing black employees to meet AA targets

Eskom black employees recruited from countries such as the USA and UK to work for Eskom to help Eskom reach its affirmative action targets. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkvyFFrsH1DUAPkWxWLUuN7Tb7jiXlNtrP6WMvhLMrsRas81kOhS4e8P6kv-WdCsbwqgEcFdUPHHie_FOWSpAVrXPmvoSVquf4YkWjn1qXiv8CiBmPbSlDvvpYFxuTprBEDWhkA3PH9sbP/s1600-h/eskom.gif"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5430774976701418402" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkvyFFrsH1DUAPkWxWLUuN7Tb7jiXlNtrP6WMvhLMrsRas81kOhS4e8P6kv-WdCsbwqgEcFdUPHHie_FOWSpAVrXPmvoSVquf4YkWjn1qXiv8CiBmPbSlDvvpYFxuTprBEDWhkA3PH9sbP/s400/eskom.gif" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 254px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px" /></a>See Carte Blanche story <a href="http://beta.mnet.co.za/carteblanche/Article.aspx?Id=3819&ShowId=1">Eskom Expats </a>Dozens of Americans and Brits recruited by the electricity giant Eskom to fill skilled labour positions. <a href="http://beta.mnet.co.za/carteblanche/Article.aspx?Id=3819&Showid=1">Watch</a> In terms of a campaign launched by Eskom a few years ago, the plan was to recruit nearly 5000 new employees over a period of five years — about half of these had to be black women. Solidarity maintains that if these allegations of appointments being abused for the sake of affirmative action targets are in fact true, the electricity supplier has dug a hole for itself. "South Africa has extremely capable people with years of experience at Eskom, but who have lost their jobs there since 1994. By blindly chasing after targets and importing black employees simply because of their skin colour, Eskom is taking things too far," Solidarity spokesperson Jaco Kleynhans said. "Not only were the employees lured to the company under false pretences, but Eskom also tried to reach targets in an illegal manner by simply appointing black employees to the positions. This approach does not benefit any South African, black or white, and the company should rather look at developing local expertise," explained Solidarity spokesperson Jaco Kleynhans. Kleynhans emphasized that Eskom's attempt to reach affirmative action targets has completely destroyed the company's efficiency. "If suitable, local black employees cannot be found to fill the positions, Eskom cannot ignore suitable white employees," "After all, the original purpose of affirmative action is in no way achieved by appointing black foreigners and an urgent investigation should be launched into Eskom's affirmative action appointments to determine who, by right, qualifies for the positions because the jobs were actually earmarked for local employees," Kleynhans explained.

Eskom importing black employees to meet AA targets

Eskom black employees recruited from countries such as the USA and UK to work for Eskom to help Eskom reach its affirmative action targets. ...

12:08 PM

Staggering 4.7million South Africans without work

Government's promise to create 500 000 employment opportunities is faltering, Cosatu general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi said on Monday. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAXxyFzpZKPL5TTAurHdF6jUOPyEzRq3rmq6dYtTa2o0ls2iWwBxyGQQSx0McMPTuIJ1HIPVGDmBJ40MxmdiWG4sSFmg39gJ2UjzP3vCLlcZQV0Nl3Z1_UvjpmPncqjG-XR9MQSOHAuG7X/s1600-h/ANC_BULLSHIT.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5430768010651692674" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAXxyFzpZKPL5TTAurHdF6jUOPyEzRq3rmq6dYtTa2o0ls2iWwBxyGQQSx0McMPTuIJ1HIPVGDmBJ40MxmdiWG4sSFmg39gJ2UjzP3vCLlcZQV0Nl3Z1_UvjpmPncqjG-XR9MQSOHAuG7X/s400/ANC_BULLSHIT.jpg" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 290px" /></a>"Much more needs to be done to make sure we achieve and preferably surpass this target," he said in a speech prepared for delivery at the Nedlac Labour Sector School. "The fact that 73 percent of those currently unemployed are under 35, and the recent entry of over a million school leavers without any matric or other qualifications and virtually no possibility of a proper job, make it absolutely imperative that we take them off the streets and give them opportunities to work and train." Although there are reports that the country is coming out of a recession, workers are yet to see evidence of this, he told delegates at the National Economic Development and Labour Council (Nedlac). Still stuck in a catastrophic recession South Africa came out of a recession during the third quarter of 2009 according to Statistics SA. "On the contrary, they are still stuck in a catastrophic recession, marked by rising unemployment, poverty and inequality. If there is any growth, it is certainly jobless growth." Last year President Jacob Zuma pledged the creation of half a million jobs through the year. But there were nearly a million retrenchments in the first quarter of 2009, and when the final figures are released, this could be over one million, Vavi said. "When you take into account that an average of five people depend on the wages brought home by one worker that means that five million South Africans were plunged into poverty in the course of last year." R17-billion worth of income lost He said unemployment increased from 23.6 percent of the labour force in the second quarter, to 24.5 percent in the third quarter of 2009. The expanded definition of unemployment, which includes those who have given up looking for work, climbed from 32.5 percent to 34.4 percent in the same period. "This means that a staggering 4.702 million South Africans are now without work, way above the levels in any comparable country." The union body estimated that for the first three quarters of 2009, at least R17-billion worth of income per year was lost by 716 000 workers who lost their jobs. This shrank the tax base and put a greater burden on social spending and meant the government had to support more families with grants. "The capitalists now say that the effects of the global crisis on South Africa have been muted. "They may have been muted for the capitalist class, whose profits have been rising more than the economy throughout the lifespan of our democracy. But for the workers it is a different story."

Staggering 4.7million South Africans without work

Government's promise to create 500 000 employment opportunities is faltering, Cosatu general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi said on Monday. ...

11:47 AM

Jacob Zuma's R65m home expansion

Jacob Zuma has prompted anger with a reported R65m expansion of his personal residence in one of the country's poorest regions. Zuma's rural homestead will gain a police station, helipad, military clinic, visitors' centre, parking lot for 40 vehicles and three houses, according to South Africa's Mail & Guardian newspaper, which claimed taxpayers would foot "the largest chunk of the bill". <img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5416986899656532962" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggbU9xiDBds6WbsUv1MJ_i3yk3rUj4q8FqG1VrQhluuDAgd1Pc9f4r6ip6DYlGJl0Rqb17VhUCRyKt9lLfV_L3-dO3XVKTk4oSdEUlFWs9cLUiX8avwh0ZdKbibCEFftJ5CovkorlWCyyq/s400/jacob-zuma-001.jpg" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" />New houses are apparently being built to accommodate Zuma's three wives, the paper said. Critics accused the president of "conspicuous consumption in the face of dire poverty". The rural family homestead is in Nkandla, in KwaZulu-Natal province, where many of Zuma's neighbours lack electricity or running water. Official figures show that more than half of KwaZulu-Natal's 10 million population live in poverty, with 1.2 million surviving on less than R200 a month. Sources told the paper that the expansion will cost an estimated R65m. Polygamy is common in rural KwaZulu and Zuma is no exception. His residence has a house for his first wife, Sizakele Khumalo. More are reportedly being built to accommodate his other wives, Nompumelelo Ntuli and Thobeka Mabhija. The houses will have thatched roofs and contain his-and-hers bathrooms, walk-in closets and a study. One will contain four bedrooms; the smaller will have three. The costly transformation was criticised as insensitive a day after Zuma warned that more jobs could be lost because of a recession that has put nearly a million out of work. William Gumede, a political author, said: "A massive house in South Africa costs R10m, so why spend R65m? … It's conspicuous consumption in the face of dire poverty." The South African presidency said no government funding would be used for Zuma's household, but the state would be responsible for the adjacent developments. "We … reject any insinuation that there could be any untoward abuse of state resources by the president or his family," it said.

Jacob Zuma's R65m home expansion

Jacob Zuma has prompted anger with a reported R65m expansion of his personal residence in one of the country's poorest regions. Zuma...

8:26 AM

Government ’living large’ while citizens feel the pain

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhERDGfH89FKcRlleLn0T6Xw_zbzsPrr46p-vuGpO_F0gTghwfU7uXwjLxpXQNRCUKEl-FIliilNa_d_0Ztgiwy1zX_8sIRy4tQbOygcDA-GdRu6AfzJfSgiJd6TUuY67O6GCNTEvwcX1s/s1600-h/day-spa-pta.bmp"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369847189623143922" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhERDGfH89FKcRlleLn0T6Xw_zbzsPrr46p-vuGpO_F0gTghwfU7uXwjLxpXQNRCUKEl-FIliilNa_d_0Ztgiwy1zX_8sIRy4tQbOygcDA-GdRu6AfzJfSgiJd6TUuY67O6GCNTEvwcX1s/s400/day-spa-pta.bmp" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 350px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 236px" /></a>Government ‘wasted R79m since July’The government has wasted R79 million since the DA set up a wasteful expenditure monitor in mid-July. See here <a href="http://www.da.org.za/campaigns.htm?action=view-page&category=7034&sub-page=7036">http://www.da.org.za/campaigns.htm?action=view-page&category=7034&sub-page=7036</a> DA MP Lindiwe Mazibuko said a further R3 million had been wasted in recent weeks. "The DA has identified an additional four examples of the ANC government’s culture of unnecessary spending," Mazibuko said today. "We will today update our Wasteful Expenditure Monitor by R3 million, bringing the total amount wasted by the new ANC administration to approximately R79 million." Mazibuko said in one case the North West education department had spent around R90,000 on "pampering" 43 directors and chief directors at a day spa outside Pretoria. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtxkWKTJUJOliYcO1Rj_mrRHZX9gQyEZUcM9Uo3HG0bnQ82tnxsCy9k53SSErvfFv4Ph2FkSV5-BEqMCJR9zBdNFpu2WpeTm9JL8zcLSfHW2Y6g2sTJW1toVXSY-SAjoyNQrgWNe7BlrA/s1600-h/day-spa-04.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369847199880747202" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtxkWKTJUJOliYcO1Rj_mrRHZX9gQyEZUcM9Uo3HG0bnQ82tnxsCy9k53SSErvfFv4Ph2FkSV5-BEqMCJR9zBdNFpu2WpeTm9JL8zcLSfHW2Y6g2sTJW1toVXSY-SAjoyNQrgWNe7BlrA/s400/day-spa-04.jpg" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 270px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 180px" /></a>"They chose the spa’s exotic full day package which cost R2099 per person," she said. The DA had counted R242,242 in wasteful expenditure by Parliamentary committees, which held meetings and workshops at luxury hotels, rather than in Parliament. The participating MPs were lodged at luxury hotels. The department of science and technology had spent R1.4 million on two Mercedes Benz ML350s for Minister Naledi Pandor at a cost of R1.4 million. The department of police spent R1.3 million on two new BMWs. Mazibuko however, welcomed an announcement by the Cabinet earlier this week that the minister of finance had tabled a draft report with proposals aimed at reducing wasteful spending. "The objectives of the proposals include addressing public concerns that government is ’living large’ while citizens are feeling the pain caused by the economic downturn," government spokesman Themba Maseko said.

Government ’living large’ while citizens feel the pain

Government ‘wasted R79m since July’ The government has wasted R79 million since the DA set up a wasteful expenditure monitor in mid-July. S...

8:27 AM

The fat of the land

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIO8uBETWxYID1B_2NVrylzEIocdd2ITfvhyeo2pcP892koPD4jx2Yg448k8qMDwcrMPBMRqJOATsJBfnQC2vZkLAg_QV9x5WybypTHa7cMktvGYLVrg6X4GEg43mXnJXJg-zd5njlv-A/s1600-h/corrupt-parl.bmp"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5364648632243509458" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIO8uBETWxYID1B_2NVrylzEIocdd2ITfvhyeo2pcP892koPD4jx2Yg448k8qMDwcrMPBMRqJOATsJBfnQC2vZkLAg_QV9x5WybypTHa7cMktvGYLVrg6X4GEg43mXnJXJg-zd5njlv-A/s400/corrupt-parl.bmp" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 311px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" /></a>While pay demands and service delivery protests cripple South Africa, government leaders are still receiving luxurious perks. In addition to salaries ranging from R2,04-million for the president to R692  085 for an MP, political office-bearers receive a range of benefits such as medical aid, housing, luxury travel and fancy cars. Last week the Democratic Alliance wrote to Vusi Mavimbela, the director general of the presidency, to request that some of these privileges be curtailed, especially the allocation for official vehicles, which the party wants reduced from R929 000 to R663 780 a vehicle. Cabinet members and deputy ministers are entitled to two vehicles. The DA also wants to revoke privileges such as free use of the Blue Train and VIP lounges at airports, as well as corporate credit cards for ministers’ expenses on official trips. “We hope that the government will take these proposals seriously and will take the steps that are necessary to show that they, too, recognise the harsh economic realities that South Africa is confronting,” DA leader Helen Zille said in a statement. Even former ministers and deputy ministers still enjoy up to 40 complimentary business-class domestic air tickets a year. Newly appointed officials such as Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga and Communications Minister Siphiwe Nyanda have been criticised for buying top-of-the-range vehicles. Others, such as Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan, have opted for more modest vehicles, while Minister in the Presidency Collins Chabane still drives the Mercedes 4X4 that his predecessor left behind, and opted to get a Volkswagen for his Cape Town office. Cape Town mayor Dan Plato is still driving his Volkswagen Chico. On Thursday, Chabane announced that ministers’ car allowances will be reconsidered as part of a review of government spending. “Political office bearers have not broken any rules,” he said in connection with the ministerial purchases. But “recognising the sensitivity of the matter, Cabinet has established a ministerial task team to look at government spending in the context of the economic meltdown”. The team will be made up of Chabane, Gordhan and Richard Baloyi, minister of public service and administration, and will “advise Cabinet on how matters of this nature can be handled”. Benefits of high-profile service Here are some of perks that parliamentarians enjoy: President <ul><li>Annual salary: R2 040 780 </li><li>Corporate credit card </li><li>State funeral with full military ceremonial honours </li><li>Presidential guest house </li><li>Full salary for life after leaving office </li><li>Security for life after leaving office </li><li>R1,3-million annual contribution to medical aid </li><li>Free furnished accommodation in Cape Town and Pretoria </li><li>Free cleaning and maintenance of these residences </li><li>R3-million for two cars for Cape Town and Pretoria </li><li>Daily allowance when travelling abroad for tips, room service, reading material and normal liquid refreshments</li></ul>Deputy president <ul></ul><li>Annual salary: R1 836 745 </li><li>State funeral with prescribed military ceremonial honours </li><li>Corporate credit card </li><li>Full salary for life after leaving office </li><li>Security for life after leaving office </li><li>R1,3-million annual contribution to medical aid </li><li>Free furnished accommodation in Cape Town and Pretoria </li><li>Free cleaning and maintenance of the residences </li><li>R3-million for two cars for Cape Town and Pretoria </li>Ministers <ul><li>Annual salary: R1 561 223 </li><li>Rent-free house in either Cape Town or Pretoria </li><li>Domestic worker </li><li>Corporate credit card </li><li>Two official cars in Cape Town and Pretoria to the value of R1-million each </li><li>Free government transport for spouses and dependants </li><li>30 business-class tickets annually for minister and spouse for discretionary use </li><li>First-class international travel for official trips </li><li>Six economy-class tickets annually for children </li><li>Spouses can travel on official trips and enjoy same benefits as ministers </li><li>Use of South African Air Force aircraft </li><li>Free travel on the Blue Train </li><li>Use of VIP lounges at airports </li><li>Private office with 10 staff members including four secretaries </li><li>Official funeral </li><li>Security worth R100 000 a year at private residences </li><li>Free telephone and internet services </li></ul>Deputy ministers <ul><li>Annual salary: R1 285 700 </li><li>State-sponsored house in either Cape Town or Pretoria </li><li>Domestic worker </li><li>Two official cars in Cape Town and Pretoria to the value of R1-million each </li><li>Free government transport for spouses and dependants </li><li>30 business-class tickets for minister and spouse </li><li>Six economy-class tickets for children </li><li>Spouse may come along on official trips </li><li>Use of South African Air Force aircraft </li><li>Free travel on the Blue Train </li><li>Use of VIP lounges at airports </li><li>Official funeral </li><li>Corporate credit card </li><li>Private office with six staff members including two secretaries </li></ul>Members of Parliament <ul></ul><li>Annual salary ranging from R692 085 to R1 836 745 </li><li>Two-thirds contribution to medical aid </li><li>54,5% of pension fund contribution </li><li>Motor vehicle allowance up to R204 532 a year </li><li>Relocation costs to Cape Town </li><li>Travel costs of children at university and two domestic workers </li><li>Telephone costs of up to R3 553 a month </li><li>78 single air tickets in economy class </li><li>12 air tickets for children </li><li>Laptop and printer </li><li>Life insurance </li>Mercs 'a steal at reduced prices'<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4jqDtpY8ms3AQzZ-8sbNm96sSvGTTK5EJfi0XDtwIWoCvOej20A3ZyCVqnORPxXy0okvIZx82ywpR8E8Q_W8Dbk4wzxl0tSQke7k26cWBytVpr1PB0iBDypY0CgORhVQK1SmxclEjy_M/s1600-h/car-bling.bmp"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5364643611101549458" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4jqDtpY8ms3AQzZ-8sbNm96sSvGTTK5EJfi0XDtwIWoCvOej20A3ZyCVqnORPxXy0okvIZx82ywpR8E8Q_W8Dbk4wzxl0tSQke7k26cWBytVpr1PB0iBDypY0CgORhVQK1SmxclEjy_M/s400/car-bling.bmp" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 253px" /></a>Free State Premier Ace Magashule and his ministers have become the latest members of government’s WaBenzi club after R11-million was splurged on new Mercedes-Benzes for the entire provincial cabinet, write Mandy Rossouw and Adriaan Basson. The revelation comes after a number of national ministers have had to explain their weakness for luxury vehicles in recent weeks. Topping the list was Communications Minister Siphiwe Nyanda, whose department spent R2,4-million on two top-of-the-range BMWs for his Cape Town and Pretoria offices. But Magashule has overtaken Nyanda as driver of the most expensive German sedan used by a South African politician. At a “discounted price” of R1,3-million, his Mercedes-Benz S600 eclipses Nyanda’s BMW 750i. Nyanda’s BM, which boasts extras such as body-roll stabilisation, electric sun blinds and high-gloss satin chrome, was a steal at R1,27-million. Magashule’s car makes Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan’s official vehicles -- an Audi A6 and Lexus GS300 at less than R600 000 each -- look frugal. The Merc S600 is the manufacturer’s flagship model and is designed to create “maximum comfort and safety” for both driver and passengers. The fully imported vehicle includes radar sensors that read road conditions, driving style and vehicle load. Passengers enjoy a gentle back massage that stimulates the back muscles, assists blood circulation and helps to prevent fatigue after a hard day’s work. The premier’s driver need not take his eyes off the road when he wants to change the radio station, CD or DVD that is fitted for passengers in the back seat, as these can all be operated from the steering wheel. The car is also fitted with its own telephone. In response to the Mail & Guardian’s questions, Teboho Sikisi, Magashule’s spokesperson, said the Free State government garage had bought the vehicles after an analysis of the most cost-effective way to transport MECs [provincial ministers]. According to him, ministers in former premier Beatrice Marshoff’s cabinet either drove their own cars and claimed exorbitant amounts for mileage each month, or their official vehicles exceeded the limit of 120 000km for public office-bearers. “Our analysis indicated that in the event that MECs used their own vehicles for official duties, their respective departments were paying between R30 000 and R45 000 a month on kilometres claimed, or between R3-million and R4-million per annum. This was very costly and unsustainable,” Sikisi said. The 11 Mercedes-Benzes were purchased as part of the Free State’s “asset base” and not for individual MECs. “The market value of each S500 is R1,3-million, but we got each for R970 000, representing a 40% discount. The market value of the S600 is R1,7-million and we got it at a discounted price of R1,3-million,” Sikisi said. “This, by any standard, is a good investment, since these vehicles constitute an asset base for the provincial government.” According to Sikisi the same arrangement is made for judges “and other VIPs” who are “clients” of the provincial government garage fleet. Through Sikisi, Magashule also defended spending R7-million on a function to mark the opening of the Free State legislature in June. “Given the nature of the event, the costs are justifiable and are normal compared with events of this nature and magnitude,” he said.

The fat of the land

While pay demands and service delivery protests cripple South Africa, government leaders are still receiving luxurious perks. In addition to...

5:02 AM

Idle minds, social time bomb

Nearly three million of the 6,7-million young South Africans in the 18-to-24-year age group were unemployed or not receiving education and training in 2007 -- and they pose a threat of “serious social disruption”.<img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5364591148609679506" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEKKHcqZJ1vZFuZfE7OgV3sRvyeJCaQ60rEg4K4Jx7uzKcJSVFuJu7CS7YmbJKKMbZcRd-dL2_LAuA5Znk_MxL3sfdiOoHVsW8uj1izL0M-roCs1PtaL-IXSFOyf5vqobvUgcnV2j8-1o/s400/BLACKS-sudansmoke.jpg" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 258px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" />These facts have been revealed by research funded by the Ford Foundation and undertaken by the Cape-based Centre for Higher Education Transformation and the University of the Western Cape’s (UWC) Further Education and Training Institute. Youthful protesters have been central to the current wave of service-delivery unrest, notably in the East Rand township of Thokoza. Conducted last year using Statistics South Africa’s 2007 Community Survey and education department statistics, the study, “Responding to the educational needs of post-school youth”, says that of the 2,8-million who were unemployed and not in education institutions, 44% are African and 41% coloured.” Reasons for young people not being in education or jobs include: <ul><li>Lack of a diverse post-school public or private college sector; </li><li>Reduction in educational opportunities because of institutional mergers; </li><li>Failure of the sector education and training authorities to provide adequate learnerships; </li><li>Less labour market absorption because the government is not meeting the Asgisa target of 6% annual economic growth; and </li><li>The uncontrolled introduction of more than two million relatively well-educated foreign workers into the labour market. </li></ul>John Butler-Adam of the Ford Foundation speculated that most idle youngsters are “at home, or wandering the streets, or both. Joining gangs will be an option -- a social security blanket” -- and crime is an option. “They could be a social time bomb and could start taking social action. They are a lost generation and need to be found,” he said, referring to recent looting by beleaguered unemployed people at a protest in Durban. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdf56RptmIMoX5RIKAJHRQaW_BYKP2X1FrdMRQvxwXpaNtdBbP8WYCPG8Y1g0R3PK0V893K7rjKfvxwhOMzRc649B25rnTGM7AcOCfQX6U6PNhYPRj8lpe4X9SW37MGYKTezXxX5JcaLk/s1600-h/crime-society.jpg"></a>The study examined attendance at educational institutions in the 18-to-24-year age group for 1996, 2001 and 2007. While South Africa’s population grew and more learners were studying, in real terms there was a decline in the number attending educational institutions. While 46% of 21-year-olds were studying in 1996, this dropped to 36% in 2001 and 32% in 2007. At the same time, the number of learners in secondary schools has grown. In 2007, 508 600 youths had not reached grade 10; and almost a million left school after completing grade 10. “This is not only an enormous waste of educational resources, but it is also the group that seems the most vulnerable to unemployment,” the study points out. They warn that “the decrease in participation [in educational institutions] for the 18-to-24-year age group severely affects the life opportunities of young people”. Butler-Adam believes learners could be dropping out before reaching grade 10 for financial reasons, or because they are “frustrated that schools are not serving them well and could drop out, ” he said. Pointing out that the number of unemployed youths not receiving education or training has increased since 2007, he warns that the number will continue to grow each year as young people leave school without completing grade 12, grade 12 leavers fail to find jobs or gain access to universities and university students drop out. The report of the study argues for the expansion of educational and training and internship opportunities and special youth-service programmes. In particular it recommends that the existing Further Education and Training (FET) vocational college sector be enlarged and strengthened. One option is for some FET colleges to be franchised by universities to offer programmes and award credits towards university degrees. Seamus Needham of the University of the Western Cape said public FET colleges are running three-year programmes, but learners needed to earn an income. “It’s not a realistic option,” he said, adding that shorter courses are needed. Butler-Adam agreed that a wider range of educational institutions is required to absorb the youth. But he said: “We can’t afford to continue like this. We need people with skills, who pay taxes and strengthen and enrich society.”

Idle minds, social time bomb

Nearly three million of the 6,7-million young South Africans in the 18-to-24-year age group were unemployed or not receiving education and t...

4:30 AM

While fatcat politicians splurge on luxuries ...

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXmcn2jITy-AhYKQpP3A8NzjHl-BFi2eOGZNvYDW0vK2nABto95SyMfHUIxNsyOTYs86k3SNC__AZuAObfJr6lkWuYwHtmGG2CXmKDK_dS2GpQzkDdLA0MFwhF3u4AW2dif1XuDjcdqmU/s1600-h/nig_image71.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5364456936497815090" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXmcn2jITy-AhYKQpP3A8NzjHl-BFi2eOGZNvYDW0vK2nABto95SyMfHUIxNsyOTYs86k3SNC__AZuAObfJr6lkWuYwHtmGG2CXmKDK_dS2GpQzkDdLA0MFwhF3u4AW2dif1XuDjcdqmU/s400/nig_image71.jpg" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 298px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" /></a> Black politicians deserve to live in luxury and to be treated like billionaires, because it sends a message that their subjects are worthwhile people. Only white people really moan about black politicians' expensive habits, because deep down they feel only white people should be entitled to such privilege. How am I doing so far? Wait, there's more. For decades of apartheid and centuries of colonialism whites took it for granted that they should live like kings. Well, white rule was overthrown by the revolution of 1994, and now it is the turn of black people to enjoy the fat of the land. To deny them that is to desire a return to the era of apartheid. It sounds obscene if you put all these excuses for the vulgar materialist excesses of the ruling fatcat politicians and public servants in one place. But I have heard these excuses and versions of them many times from the likes of ANC Youth League jokers, Luthuli House apparatchiks, ANC-aligned intellectuals, BEE beneficiaries, journalists and columnists in the pockets of ANC millionaires and even from propagandists of the Communist Party. But I've been around the block a few times. I've heard many variations of these excuses before, uttered in defence of the politician thieves of the old Zaire, Angola, Nigeria and Equatorial Guinea. I have also heard accusations that whites don't criticise the American or European politicians who also get paid vast amounts of money and live in luxury, they only criticise African leaders. Having considered all these excuses properly, I still want to make a few remarks about the way the present government and ruling party are flashing their ultra-luxurious lifestyles, homes, cars, clothes and parties in the faces of millions struggling to feed themselves and their children and put a roof over their heads. And yes, I am classified as a white person. It is my considered opinion that if the president of the ruling party and the country, Jacob Zuma, was indeed serious about his concern for the welfare of ordinary South Africans, he would not have allowed the presidential residence in Durban to be renovated at a price of R150 million; he would have scaled down the cavalcade of expensive new 4x4s and luxury sedans accompanying him wherever he goes from in the 30s to four or five; and he would have slashed his own lavish expenditure on inaugurations, official receptions and parties. Instead, Zuma asks for more patience from service delivery protesters and striking workers, saying it is unfair to criticise the new administration as it is still finding its feet. No, Mr President, it is unfair of you to ask workers and the unemployed to be patient while you and your party and your ministers and senior public servants spend tens of millions on extravagant luxuries. While your comrades in government, including those from Cosatu and the Communist Party, buy the most expensive cars and live it up like royalty, the number of citizens who have given up looking for work has risen to 1.52 million - that is on top of the 4.13 million people registered as unemployed. That means a minimum of 5.65 million South Africans who are potential breadwinners no longer have a regular income. That translates to many, many millions of people when one takes these people's families into account. How do you, Mr President, and your comrades sleep at night when you look at these figures? Just this week the Minister of Water and Environmental Affairs declared six district municipalities in the Eastern Cape disaster areas due to "ailing water and sewerage infrastructure". These areas include the birthplaces of national icons Oliver Tambo and Nelson Mandela. The municipalities are not a lot worse off than many others. Do you close your ears when people tell you these things, Mr President? Do you quickly turn the page when newspapers report on them? If you reject my criticism because I'm white, let me tell you what one of Africa's leaders of the past, President Thomas Sankara of Burkina Faso, said more than 20 years ago in Ouagadougou. Sankara said the problem with Africa was that Africans had gained formal political power but their minds were still colonised. They were Africans but really wanted to be like their former colonial masters. Too many Africans suffered from self-loathing, he said. They are in perpetual conflict: they know and honour their own culture and ancestors, but part of them agrees with the European view that perhaps these are inferior and primitive. That was Sankara's take on why so many African leaders were "bathing themselves in gold". By the way, President Sankara's official presidential car was an ancient Peugeot 404 with a cracked windscreen.

While fatcat politicians splurge on luxuries ...

Black politicians deserve to live in luxury and to be treated like billionaires, because it sends a message that their subjects are worthwhi...

3:37 PM

The Truth about Apartheid

The truth has been suppressed for long enough, it is time for the world to hear the other side of the story. <object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/LOrKyGdNWDw&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en&feature=player_embedded&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/LOrKyGdNWDw&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en&feature=player_embedded&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" width="425" height="344"></embed></object> The South African economy in the 1960's experienced a growth rate of 6%, with an inflation rate of only 2% which stimulated economic growth across the racial spectrum. Unemployment across all races stood at only 4-5%.Today, the country we call South Africa, the "NEW" South Africa, is but a mere depressing sight. <a class="entry-title-link" closure_hashcode_ivaqp="731" href="http://www.thetimes.co.za/News/Article.aspx?id=1040957" target="_blank">SA jobless rate at 23.6% in Q2 </a>South Africa’s official jobless rate stood at 23,6% of the labour force in the second quarter of 2009, up slightly from 23,5% in the first quarter, a labour report showed on Tuesday. In its latest quarterly Labour Force Survey, Statistics South Africa said the total number of unemployed people stood at 4,125 million in the second three months of this year. Stats S.A. said the number of employed people fell by 267000 to 13,369 million.

The Truth about Apartheid

The truth has been suppressed for long enough, it is time for the world to hear the other side of the story. The South African economy in th...

8:30 AM

Bling BMW: A slap in our faces

"Ask Minister Siphiwe Nyanda what government officials do in a recession..." <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsidsgXnwomu3haC-4zTodH_T4wR8tvQLvLGru-JDx_MJL7c_ydysGy9jUc1jvVNtM6v5B7SedpVbeO80CrsTRs4h4YUiok-m9jWjpwMGtuMkh_A1xW7PKCmgCV3YWgNr2SGQDE3qB9R0/s1600-h/bmw-7-series02.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5361780089301435090" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsidsgXnwomu3haC-4zTodH_T4wR8tvQLvLGru-JDx_MJL7c_ydysGy9jUc1jvVNtM6v5B7SedpVbeO80CrsTRs4h4YUiok-m9jWjpwMGtuMkh_A1xW7PKCmgCV3YWgNr2SGQDE3qB9R0/s400/bmw-7-series02.jpg" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" /></a>What does communications minister Siphiwe Nyanda do in the middle of a recession, where jobs are being lost, houses and cars are being repossessed by the thousand, most industries are in negative growth and we are all being told to watch our spending and tighten our belts? He goes out and buys, not one, but two top of the range luxury German cars with every extra under the sun attached, thus figuratively speaking running around beltless and shameless. I sit hear confused and irritated asking myself - what world do our ministers live in? In reality we are being encouraged to save and watch our spending. The government on the other hand, being the well-rounded role models they are, are living like rock stars with an endless supply of funds to buy luxury cars fit for heads of state in most rich first world countries. While we are grappling with the worst global recession in history our ignorant ministers are rushing out to luxury stores and buying like there is no tomorrow. Eskom, a state owned parastatal, is raising tariffs by 33%; the country is being lambasted by a wave of strikes demanding extra wages, everything is getting more expensive, house hold debt is at its highest in recorded history, and car sales are in negative growth along with most other sales of goods. Guidelines are flawed The prescribed guidelines for ministerial purchases are fundamentally flawed and its current practices are not in line with the current economic trends. How on earth can you justify spending R2.5m on two cars when you as a government are pleading poverty, raising taxes, paying your doctors pittances, not supplying your hospitals with the basic equipment used to save lives to name but a few on a very long list? Minster, I have a friend who was on a flight from Johannesburg to Durban after the final rugby test match between SA and the Lions. One of our senior rugby players and his family were spotted by cabin crew sitting in economy class with the rest of the common man. He and his family were invited to move into business class and he refused point blank saying "he was very happy where he was". I mention this purely to make a point that you don't have to take everything that is prescribed to you or your misdirected sense of entitlement deems necessary. This form of behaviour should be a lesson to you and all your "bling bling" cronies in government who are rewarding yourselves before you have even started doing your job. At the moment, the way things are going you should be riding a bicycle to the office or making use of our excellent public transport like everyone else. Minister I challenge you to inform the South African tax-paying public who bought these cars for you out of our hard earned taxes what ceramic surround for controls, ambient interior lighting, adaptive headlights, high beam assist, a three-spoke, leather-covered steering wheel, a R23 400 "rear-seat entertainment" system and a R5 600 "high-gloss satin chrome" paint job help you do your job? Maybe I am just ignorant but these extras are a slap in our faces. What is wrong with a standard 320d BMW? Most people only dream of owning a 3 series BMW, but you lift your nose up at it and go for the top of the range. Why do you need a 750i BMW? I will tell you why, because to you it's all about image, image at the cost of all else, as long as you look good in your designer suits, ministerial mansions, and luxury German cars everything else can fall to pieces. This form of behaviour has no place in a third-world country where more than half your population are below the bread line. No guilt? Minister, on a more personal level, how do you sleep at night knowing you just spent R2.5m on two cars, while so many South Africans can't even afford a roof over their heads? Do you justify your actions with bureaucratic guidelines and red tape? Shame on you and every other government official spending our taxes quicker than we can earn them. Every day you hear about another minister blowing the bank on some or other exorbitant spending spree or their officials running elaborate fraudulent schemes. Mr Jacob Zuma, the so called "president of the people" is also slipping into the cracks of gluttonous and unscrupulous spending with a new government which is clearly out of control and has no idea about the fundamental difference between money and wealth. Let it be known that you were voted in by the people, the same people who are struggling to make ends meet on a monthly basis. It is time for you and your government to humble yourselves and come down to our level. You are after all our employees; we pay your salaries and fit the bills for all of this reckless spending that has become the norm in the ANC. Lastly, to everyone who voted for the ANC. The next time you are on walking or driving on one of our roads and a 750i BMW with ceramic surround controls, ambient interior lighting, adaptive headlights, high beam assist a three-spoke, leather-covered steering wheel, a R23 400 "rear-seat entertainment" system and a R5 600 "high-gloss satin chrome" paint job screams past you at 180km/h throwing dust and rubber in your face, leaving your tiny insignificant image in its rear camera view, wipe the dust out of your eyes and take a look around and remember who you voted for. After all it's your vote that gives them the blank cheque. These officials should be held accountable for this blatant abuse of power and money. It's no wonder we are such an angry nation, our own government is misappropriating our taxes and hiding behind laws they created to protect their taste for the finest luxuries money can buy. As the late and great Winston Churchill said, "you can fool some of the people some of the time, but you can't fool all the people all of the time." We are not fools, so next time you pop into your luxury store and buy some unnecessary item, know we are watching you, and we will not stop until you stop.

Bling BMW: A slap in our faces

"Ask Minister Siphiwe Nyanda what government officials do in a recession..." What does communications minister Siphiwe Nyanda do i...

10:40 AM

South Africa P.I.G.