Magda Wierzycka: Helping SA back from brink – and that infamous convo on SAP’s corruption

LONDON — At 12, Magda Wierzycka's family risked their lives escaping communist Poland only to spend the next year in an Austrian refugee camp before her medical doctor parents were offered a new start in South Africa. That experience was a big motivator in this qualified actuary's decision to lift her head high above the parapet when her new homeland needed it most. Last year, when resistance against Gupta-driven industrial scale plunder of South Africa was at its lowest, Wierzycka went very public with her concerns. Hindsight shows she helped greatly in turning the tide. With the old regime having been ejected, Magda has now returned to her day job. I caught up with her in a sweltering London where Sygnia's founder and CEO is investigating ways to globalise her mushrooming business. We spoke about South Africa's immediate past, its likely future and how she feels now about the very public position she adopted. An exercise in courage and, yes, testicular fortitude. – Alec Hogg

This is The Rational Perspective. I'm Alec Hogg.

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