Dangerous double-speak

Despite assurances by president Jacob Zuma and other cabinet ministers that nationalisation of mines is not the policy of the ANC-led government, they were again contradicted this weekend by ANC Youth League (ANCYL) president Julius Malema, while how dangerous this game of double-speak has become is illustrated by the results of a survey also released this weekend indicating that Malema is winning the popular support battle for his stand.

In a speech before the South African Union of Jewish Students on Friday Malema boldly declared: “Nationalisation of mines is ANC policy because the Freedom Charter is a strategic objective of the ANC. We re-affirmed our standing that mines nationalisation should happen in order to achieve the following:

• Increase the budget of the State for social development purposes, e.g. Health, Education, Rural development, fight against crime and unemployment;
• Lay a very firm basis for the country's minerals to be locally beneficiated and industrialised;
• Change the South African economy from over-dependence and reliance on export of natural resources and import of finished goods and services;
• Create new economic centres of development outside of Johannesburg, Durban and Cape Town;  and
• Could improve the working conditions and pay of mineworkers.

A TNS Research Survey poll published on Sunday found that support for the Malema-stand is growing among the majority black population. While about a third of those living in South Africa’s cities still do not have an opinion on the question of nationalisation, among those who have an opinion, the overall balance is strongly in favour of nationalisation.

While whites remain mostly strongly opposed to nationalisation, black South Africans are in favour by a two-thirds majority.

While the results of the survey are bound to embolden Malema and the ANCYL in their stance that the state should take a controlling share of 60% in all privately owned mines, managed through a single state-owned mining company, a trade union leader has warned that mine nationalisation without compensation would spark revolution because of the large number of South Africans who would lose their pensions.

Dr James Motlatsi, former National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) president  was reported by Mining Weekly as saying that he believes that nationalisation with compensation is a non-starter, because the government does not have the R2-trillion-plus that it will cost to buy the mines.

He foresees that expropriation without compensation would cause the Johannesburg Stock Exchange to collapse, bringing down the major pension and provident funds with it, and causing large numbers of ordinary citizens and public servants to lose their retirement investments.

“If you want a revolution in this country, then go that route,” Motlatsi, who chairs mining recruitment company TEBA, commented to Mining Weekly Online.

Motlatsi was, however also  far from impressed with the way that business has tackled the mine nationalisation issue thus far.

He would like business in general and the mining industry in particular to be far more proactive and far less reactive on nationalisation, into which the ANC is currently undertaking a study.

In taking the lead, he demands that business be crystal clear and that it steers away from  mere condemnatory rhetoric.

He disagrees with the notion that the nationalisation bogey will simply  go away on its own, and he decries those who abstain from taking part in crucial political debate of an economic nature.

He fears that, if South African business fails to act decisively, it may present political opportunity to those on the lunatic fringe, particularly within a scenario of faltering economic growth and high unemployment, Mining Weekly reported.

The uncertainty about the long-term polity in the matter could also undermine the Government’s efforts and declared goal to attract foreign investment into South African mining and related beneficiation sectors.

In fact acting director-general of trade and industry, Lionel October has just gone on record that South Africa, which has just become part of the emerging nations bloc called Brics (Brasil, Russia, India, China and South Africa), will ask that organisation at talks later this week for more direct investment and trade in local beneficiation industries.

Malema on Brics

South Africa is joining the organisation after an invitation to do so by China in December of last year.

The South African delegation to the talks, starting on Thursday, will be led by president Zuma himself and would also include ministers Rob Davies of trade and industry, Maite Nkoana-Mashabane of international relations and cooperation and representatives of 50 local companies.

On the issue of joining the bloc of emerging nations Malema and the ANCYL also find themselves at odds with the president and his government, and he also had something to say about this subject to the Jewish students: "I'm still to be convinced what becomes the role of South Africa in Brics, or Bric, because those countries, both in terms of population and the size of their economies, we are nowhere close to those people,"

He expressed his doubt whether South Africa will be in a position to play a meaningful role in the organisation.

“We are told that we are part of Bric, now it's called Brics with our involvement. We are still going to listen what contribution we are going to make.
"The only thing we are going to bring there is better political character ... other than that, they are just going to swallow us.
"We'll just be a small country among the biggest economies and populations, and our contribution might be meaningless.”
Within the context of Brics he also attacked the role of China in Africa and questioned China’s motives for involving South Africa.

"People use us to get into Africa, take mineral resources raw as they are and leave South Africa, or Africa. The Chinese are number one in doing that,” he said.