Cyril's power move, plus five highlights from ‘Vrye Weekblad’

The ANC chooses to publicly have an ideologically tense relationship with the most important role players in the market economy, but there are signs that President Cyril Ramaphosa values the opinions of business leaders. 

Ramaphosa's political life, however, is more or less dependent on the nurturing of this historical suspicion of the capital leadership.

Piet Croucamp got flak from a business mogul after suggesting in the media that this person had talks with the president before his announcement about private power generation. “My contention was that these talks led to the president convincing his minerals and energy minister to change the policy,” he writes in this week's edition of Vrye Weekblad. 

The president's own enormous wealth was built on the back of a formalised brotherhood between him and white capital, and this means that there is an almost natural suspicion towards any possible approach between the president and the “capitalists”. This is especially true for capitalists of the old guard, but also includes the new entrepreneurs at the top of the BEE food chain. 

And why is it such a mortal political sin to make deals with local capital owners?

Why would a businessman be so angry when he is seen as one of the players in the free market who can positively influence the president?

Read more about this, and more news and analysis in this week's Vrye Weekblad.

Must-read articles in this week’s Vrye Weekblad

>> Browse the full June 18 edition

THE NP AND AFRIKAANS | The imposing of Afrikaans on black schools was a wound to the heart of the language that has still not healed. Max du Preez digs into the history of this transgression in an effort to understand what happened. 

A VOICE FOR THE GATVOL | Government's “unfair and unworkable” e-toll plan made Wayne Duvenhage quit as CEO of Avis in 2013 to dedicate his time to Opposition to Urban Tolling Alliance. Today, Outa has moved beyond e-tolls, and wants to keep putting pressure on government and help with new solutions. 

REVISITING HECTOR | In a conversation with Hector Pieterson's sister Antoinette Sithole we meet a quiet young man who loved to laugh and was a fan of Bruce Lee's karate moves.

PRIVATE POPI  | Hopefully, you have already started drastically rethinking protecting yours and others' information, because there are less than two weeks before the POPI act kicks in.

THE TRUTH IS A LIE | Social media gets the blame for the fake news and disinformation threatening our democracy, but this could be misleading and prevent the real problem from getting solved.