Dear Editor
The Democratic Alliance affirms our most profound objection to the ANC creating a new Mega-State Owned Entity, to manage all other state-owned companies, as it will be a vehicle for grand-scale ANC corruption. It is set to cost South African taxpayers over R600 million just to set up.
National Treasury appeared before the Planning, Monitoring & Evaluation Committee yesterday in Parliament, expressing significant concerns on the potential of malfeasance in the ANC’s National State Enterprises Bill. The DA welcomes the raising of these concerns by Treasury, and we agree with them.
The Bill seeks to centralise all of South Africa’s state-owned enterprises under one holding company, overseen by the President. This is a gross centralisation of power, and undermines democratic transparency.
Following ANC State Capture, we have seen this story before and we know its ending – South Africans will lose out and ANC cadres will get rich.
The DA agrees with National Treasury’s red flags, in particular:
- The blatant lack of financial oversight proposed, through exempting SOEs from the PFMA,
- Excessive powers given to the President as shareholder, while also being Head of State,
- Treasury needing to inject R600m to set up the holding company, which would be a waste of taxpayer funds.
The Financial and Fiscal Commission also agreed with National Treasury, arguing that the bill will allow political interference, and it is not the model to be followed in reforming our SOEs.
National Treasury’s verdict must be the death knell of this Bill.
South Africans have had enough of corruption. South Africans want a growing economy and jobs, which this Bill will regress against.
Regards
Darren Bergman MP
DA Spokesperson on Planning, Monitoring & Evaluation