🔒 Boardroom Talk: Entrepreneur Rob Hersov at large; repeats ‘Voetsek ANC’ in front of Luthuli House

By Alec Hogg

The immediate focus for anyone looking at this official DA pic (above) of yesterday’s march on Luthuli House, is the political party’s leader in the centre of the frame. Look closer and there’s Rob Hersov three rows behind John Steenhuisen. The rare sighting of a global entrepreneur’s public display of solidarity with the official opposition. But much more was yet to come.

After the rally stopped for speeches, Hersov was given the mic and used the occasion to repeat the ‘Voetsek ANC’ he first call made at BNC#4. That message hit a nerve among the 230 delegates who were present in the Drakensberg arena – and 440 000 others who have since watched the recording on BizNewsTV’s YouTube channel. (click here).

Having once been handed the megaphone at a political rally, I can attest that its electrifying effect. Because of the crowd’s urgings and reaction, unlikely words like ‘Viva’ and ‘Phansi’ suddenly get embedded into your speech. Hersov resisted that most obvious of populist temptations. But nonetheless, the man still delivered a commanding performance.

His speech (embedded below) is a quick-fire compression of the far more measured BNC#4 address. Again, he is an orator with abundant energy, authentic anger, self-confidence and righteous indignation. Hersov, who is rich, smart and brave, is already popular among aspirational young South Africans. This very public rant outside the ANC’s stronghold is sure to expand that.

More for you to read:

• The Davos Crowd Sees a New Dawn, but It May Be a False One. WSJ’s editor at large Gerard Baker writes that although populists have lost some elections, free trade and the global order are still under attack all over. Click here.
• Peter Thiel is apparently NOT a Crypto True Believer, but perhaps a pump and dumper. His Founders Fund appears to have been aggressively selling Bitcoin even as he was punting the digital currency at the Bitcoin2022 event in Miami Beach. Click here.  
• BNC#5’s opening speaker Dr Aseem Malhotra’s fame is growing apace. He is the star of Dr Julie Sladden’s article published in The Spectator Australia. Headline – Breaking the silence: Do mRNA vaccine harms outweigh benefits? Click here.