For nearly two decades, we've had the notion of BEE as a magic wand that will miraculously solve everything rammed down our collective throats.
In spite of a spectacular LACK of transormation (lawd, it's sounds like a butterfly's metamorphosis, doesn't it?) that this has brought about, our government continues to preach the value of their BEE program, as they do in this article: http://www.fin24.com/Economy/BEE-an-economic-imperative-Davies-20121002.
However, while Davies continues to wax lyrical about the almost mystical power of BEE to get the masses out of their shacks and into the boardroom, there are a few things that are glaringly obvious to everyone not wearing ANC tinted spectacles.
First, there's the issue of ability.
I'm not denying that there are smart black people out there - lots of them. However, in all but a few cases, those are NOT the black bums that end up in the driver's seats here.
I like to think of it like this - you can dress a monkey up in a suit, and call him CEO, but he stays a monkey.
It's the reason that nepotism fails spectacularly every time, among every race group - just because you WANT someone to be in the driver's seat, that doesn't mean they should be.
Which brings me to my second argument.
What happens to companies run by incompetent people (of any race?)
They hemorrage money. Profits go out the window, money is spent on frivolous things, and they end up in financial trouble.
The result of that is job losses (directly) and a failure to grow (which means no new jobs either.)
By choosing to hire based purely on race, rather than on ability, you are effectively stifling job creation. (Nice one, ANC, keep up the lip service though!)
Then there's investor confidence.
Whether we like it or not, people in South Africa and abroad are drawing parallels between SA and Zim, and the result is not a pretty picture.
The idea of investing in South African business that is a) headed by someone whose only real qualification for the job is their race, b) are badly run, and c) could be nationalised at any time is not one that's likely to have investors lining up with fistfuls of dollars.
Face it, Mr. Davies, BEE, as it stands now is having the exact OPPOSITE effect to what was intended.
However, like the ANC denial about education and police failure under their watch, I am sure that they will just keep lying to themselves about it.
What a joke.
Disclaimer: All articles and letters published on MyNews24 have been independently written by members of News24's community. The views of users published on News24 are therefore their own and do not necessarily represent the views of News24. News24 editors also reserve the right to edit or delete any and all comments received.
