South Africa’s economic woes characterized by a lack of investment will not be addressed until the business elite find a political voice.
This is according to political analyst Moeletsi Mbeki. Addressing captains of industry at a breakfast hosted by the Pietermaritzburg and Midlands Chamber of Business in Pietermaritzburg on Friday, Mbeki attributed the lack of investment in the economy to the fact that the business elite is currently politically powerless.
“Political power is currently in the hands of the political elite, which controls about R1,5 trillion in state funds. Unlike the pre-1994 political elite, which also owned assets, the current political elite doesn’t own any assets,” he said.
The current political elite, which spends the bulk of the government’s budget on social grants and public- sector salaries to create a black middle class, Mbeki said, could not be expected to protect the interests of the business elite.
That is why you find the political elite talking about things such as the expropriation of land without compensation and the introduction of a wealth tax.
Given the fact that the current political elite do not own property, Mbeki said, they find it difficult to resist the temptation to steal.
“This creates a situation where the business elite finds itself in a vulnerable situation. Their assets can be seized by a stroke of a pen,” he said.
As long as the business elite continue to be politically powerless, Mbeki said, there will be low economic growth.
“They are reluctant to invest in the country’s economy” he said.
The establishment of a political party representing the interests of the business elite, Mbeki said, would result in the business sector gaining confidence in government, and investing in the economy.
While the majority of the poor and the underclass support the ANC as a result of the social grants which the ANC-led government has provided, Mbeki said there is a likelihood they would switch to the business elite political party should one be established.
“The poor don’t want to receive social grants for the rest of their lives, they want to work. “So, given that the business elite has the ability to create jobs, the poor and unemployed are likely to support such a political party,” he said.
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