ANC in the Western Cape targeting banks

Following last week’s provincial lekgotla‚ the party is calling for the transformation‚ deracialisation and deconcentration of the financial sector.

Party secretary Faiez Jacobs was quick to explain that their call was not in support of the Gupta family.

“We are not supporting individuals or a group to form a bank‚ we are dealing with the principle of deconcentrating the economy‚” said Jacobs.

A hot debate around the banking sector has been raging since last year when the country’s major banks decided to close accounts belonging to companies owned by the Gupta family - close friends of President Jacob Zuma.

The issue has caused some divisions within the ANC.

But Jacobs said banks are not helping the underprivileged with access to funding.

“They regulate among themselves the prices in the industry‚ the practices and the standards. So there are barriers to entry in the market‚” said Jacobs.

Jacobs said finance was needed to develop poor people who had good business ideas.

“The auntie that is selling vetkoek out there‚ her big problem is not that she is lazy or she doesn’t work hard. Her problem is that she can’t expand because she does not have access to finance‚” said Jacobs.

His party called for the country to “fast-track the Post Bank and ensure that it becomes the principal distributor of social grants”.

The provincial lekgotla was addressed by‚ among others‚ former Western Cape premier Ebrahim Rasool.

According to Jacobs‚ Rasool was back permanently in the province following his stint as South Africa’s ambassador to the United States of America.

His party was looking to use him more‚ together with other former ANC provincial leaders‚ said Jacobs.

TMG Digital/TimesLIVE