Unemployment, racism, lack of access to technology hinder 'the South Africa we deserve', panel hears

A poor voter turnout of 40% in the May 29 elections was a clear indication overwhelmed South Africans have lost their trust in the government.

This is according to Jay Naidoo, a former minister in the Presidency and former secretary-general of labour federation Cosatu.

He was giving a keynote address electronically at a higher education media services discussion on “The future of a South Africa that we want and deserve” at the Durban University of Technology (DUT) on Wednesday. 

“This is a chilling statistic which could have been part of a South African national debate. The question we have in our mind is how legitimate are those who have been elected to sit in parliament,” said Naidoo.

“As interesting as the voting pattern is, it did not give any party an outright majority. We can conclude most South Africans do not trust our political parties, especially the old liberation movement in Africa, the ANC. I am tired of speaking in generalities. I have lived for the past three years in the North West province, close to Marikana, a province in which, Stats SA recently stated, there are more unemployed than employed,” he said.

Naidoo said unemployment was a dire challenge in South Africa which was one of the reasons he bought a farm where he trains young people from townships in regenerative farming.

“It’s a foundational resource to grow community empowerment and assets. It has to go together with the extension services that empower a new generation to rise above subsistence farming and become successful smallholder farmers working together, sharing knowledge, creating a one-stop shop of technical expertise that can be an ecoversity of learning. I am part of such a global learning network. Every farm, every community, must become a centre of training and education in life skills.”

He said universities were once the nurseries of debate which produced the most outstanding leaders that led to the freedom struggle.

“I think back to the inspiring words I heard Steve Biko speak when I was 15: 'We have nothing to lose but our chains. The mind of the oppressed is the main weapon in the hands of the oppressor.' This is the change I want to be harnessed in a national effort,” said Naidoo.

Panellist Slindile Khanyile, a communications entrepreneur, said while the country had made positive strides there were still challenges that needed to be addressed. She cited structural racism, accountable leadership, poor basic education and a lack of access to technology as some of the challenges.

“We have seen the low voter turnout because people are looking for leaders who can be accountable,” she said.

Khanyile said the Covid-19 outbreak in 2020 had proven the government could respond in an agile way.

“We saw how unemployment insurance funds could be disbursed to those who found themselves without work,” she said.

While structural racism still persisted in the country, some challenges should be blamed on the government, including  corruption rooted in the procurement offices of some institutions.

“Some of the mistakes are now on us. You cannot blame a situation where a procurement officer has not processed payment on the previous regime. It is on us. We have long passed a stage where a T-shirt or food parcel is used to lure the public to vote for you. We need to introspect,” said Khanyile.

Another panellist, Petro Connect MD Sbonelo Mbatha, expressed concern about the power of unions as well as government policies which were stifling businesses from thriving. He said would-be employers were often constrained, as policies were too stringent and discouraged some entrepreneurs.

DUT deputy vice-chancellor Prof Thandwa Mthembu cited ethical leadership and a lack of vision as major challenges for the country.

“The problem is we don’t have a vision. We may have had a vision in 1994, as blurred as it was. Many policies have led to corruption,” said Mthembu.

He said South Africans needed to shift from being too idealistic to becoming more pragmatic. “Look at other nations such China. As much as there is a lot of ideology, there also exists a lot of pragmatism which has been infused in the way the country functions.”

He said the economy needed to be shaken up. “ What is needed is for us to grow the economy even more so that we can help our people. We have to be more pragmatic.”

Mthembu said education, as advocated by former president Nelson Mandela, was the key to unlocking a better South Africa for all.

Panellists felt there was a need for a complete overhaul of the status quo for the country to grow and flourish.

“We need to revisit some of the stringent policies which can ensure that businesses thrive. Look at someone from a remote area of Nquthu for instance, can they afford to pay a minimum wage to their employees? No,” said Mbatha. “We need to revisit the tax laws which are often prohibitive. Most business people do not like paying tax, especially if they don’t see where it’s going.”

He said most financial institutions boasted about offering funding but this wasn't always the case. “It's almost as if they are dangling the funding in the air, out of reach. Let us fund entrepreneurs until they all get it right. We have to be intentional in ensuring that these people get funding.”

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