By Alec Hogg
Two months ago, peerless columnist RW Johnson alerted the BizNews tribe to the malevolent influence in Africa – and potentially SA – of Wagner, the now famous Russian private army. The piece is well worth another read. Click here.
After last month’s threatened coup in Russia, the exiling of Wagner’s leader and disbandment of the mercenary force introduced a new dynamic into Africa. Today’s piece from the FT speculates how this may be playing out in a country just 4 000km to the north of us.
___STEADY_PAYWALL___Once installed through gullible or paid-for voters – or rigged elections – low-lives like Faustin-Archange Touadéra in the Central African Republic have traded national assets for Wagner protection. In the CAR’s case, Wagner’s newly acquired gold and diamond mines keep Touadéra in the presidential palace. There’s a similar story in gold-rich Mali.
Reading all this made me wonder about similar backroom deals in my country’s natural assets. For instance, how did the Renova group, controlled by one of Putin’s favourite oligarchs Viktor Vekselberg, get to own United Manganese of Kalahari? Vekselberg has apparently since sold down his interest. The ANC’s Chancellor House, however, is still a significant shareholder.
So many skeletons in so many cupboards. Such explosive secrets will only be exposed when voters empower a new broom to sweep clean South Africa’s deep-seated corruption. The stakes for in SA’s 2024 National Election couldn’t be higher. Not least for the incumbent ruling political party.
Sterkte.
Alec
Read also:
- Russia’s Wagner Group to maintain African operations amid post-mutiny power struggle
- Heystek: What needs to happen for me to change my mind about investing in SA
- Exclusive Martin Wolf: Insights on South Africa’s path to success and wake-up call for Democratic Capitalism
*If you want to ‘Get Context. Be Informed’ about South Africa’s future; there are few better ways than rubbing shoulders with our five keynote speakers at our one-off BizNews@10 in Hermanus on Friday, August 4. To book your place, here’s the link: https://qkt.io/zLaR1L
