“We are in serious trouble. I really want to bring home this point: I don’t think we have a deep appreciation of how much trouble the South African economy is in right now ... the Eskom crisis is one we could see repeated in any sector.”
That was the warning delivered by Mmusi Maimane at the Cape Town Press Club on Monday. He said change in SA was inevitable as we had reached breaking point, but he “hopes and prays it is through the ballot” because “if we don’t bring change through the ballot it will be a far scarier thought”.
Maimane hopes to shake up governance of the country with his political party, Build One South Africa (Bosa), formed late last year and which, he believes, will rely on a strong coalition.
Despite the anxiety, says the politician, a certain degree of optimism is fundamental to saving the country or we might as well “turn the lights off permanently” and give up.
“I can choose to say it’s all doom and gloom, but instead I am saying let’s have hope and build one SA,” he said, adding that glimmers of hope exist in our buoyant travel industry, the wealth of minerals in the country and that innovation abounds locally.
Our greatest existential threat is if Eskom cannot keep the grid stable ... because that also stops people from investing in the country.
— Bosa's Mmusi Maimane
When asked by an audience member why SA could overcome these challenges when other African countries have not, he pointed to African states that are doing well and countries overseas that are failing.
He said to much laughter: “Look at 10 Downing Street. It’s becoming a bit of a bed and breakfast.”
Back to problems dogging SA ahead of the next election, he said: “Nobody should win an election with unemployment and poverty and education the way they are.”
Maimane said despite cynicism, “coalitions are our future” as this beats a one-party dominance which in the past few years has led to deepening state capture.
He said the country is dogged by historical and contemporary problems.
A child born in a wealthy Cape Town suburb has the same prospects that they did in the 1970s, but so does a child born in Khayelitsha: they do not have any more prospects now than they did all those decades ago.
On energy, he said: “Twelve hours of load-shedding a day is not normal. Regardless of what plan the government adopts, it is incapable of implementation.”
On unemployment: “Everyone speaks of a time bomb. But it is not a time bomb. It is a cancerous virus and we are watching it in front of our eyes.”
He said the claim of an above-80% pass rate is “meaningless” given the state of most schools, and that “we have to do everything we can to fix our education system”.
He says we do not have the luxury of saying “a problem in another area is not my problem” because the country will run out of skills, and a problem that affects some, affects all.
Stimulating micro-enterprise is crucial so more small businesses can start up, and so too is a national venture capital fund, he added.
“Our greatest existential threat is if Eskom cannot keep the grid stable,” he said, “because that also stops people from investing in the country.”
At the weekend the Sunday Times reported that five Eskom power stations are being guarded by the military to prevent sabotage, after state intelligence indicated imminent and direct threats to infrastructure, including power stations.
The deployment has, however, had little effect, and the energy crisis continues to affect homes and businesses across the country.
He argued in favour of introducing small nuclear reactors while focusing on renewables for the longer-term future, and also pointed to a healthcare system that needs major work but cautioned “nationalisation of health care is not the answer”.
Maimane said he is identifying candidates in every community — a major part of Bosa’s vision.
So far 480 have been identified, and “we will increase that number exponentially because these are citizens who say I work for my community and want to serve my community”.
He wants to tackle voter apathy head on and target young people who are voting for the first time.
“Bosa’s fundamental goal is to bring a coalition together and build a bridge with communities. The idea is not to simply coalesce around getting the ANC out.”
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