EFF – After moonlight flit, half Zuptas have fallen. Next is the President.
When 35 year old firebrand Julius Malema was kicked out of the ruling ANC, he was warned that life would be "cold" outside the party's warm embrace. Malema certainly turned that prediction on its head through a mixture of personal charisma, populist economic rhetoric and exposing secrets sourced from deep within his old party. Early on he identified the avaricious Indian immigrant Gupta family as President Jacob Zuma's weak point, and has driven home the advantage by combining them in the #Zuptamustfall rallying cry, his party will be celebrating the Gupta moonlight flit – and there is no doubt the EFF will keep pushing until all of the ugly truth about the family's modus operandi is exposed. Where Malema is wrong, though, is propagating the myth that the Guptas are a reflection of the way most big business operate here. That's simply not true. The South African business establishment has many faults, but routinely bribing State officials and trading political favours for business advantage are not among them. The companies are too sophisticated, too well governed to expose themselves to such risks. Besides, the complexion of SA business has become considerably darker since 1994 – both in ownership and leadership – so to blast the business community as "white capital" is factually incorrect. In any event, those individuals targeted like Johann Rupert, Koos Bekker and Nicky Oppenheimer made and retain the bulk of their fortunes abroad. Attacking them, and the rapidly globalising SA business community, simply alienates the nation's job creating engine and major tax base. – Alec Hogg
By Tammy Petersen, News24
