The Burning Platform - Level Up

Cosatu ‘declares war’ on Tito's budget

South Africa is officially in a double dip recession, strap yourself in! Does Cyril have the backbone to prevent 'triple dip’ by making the necessary pragmatic calls immediately? The unions have ‘declared war’ on Tito and government's plans to cut jobs and save R150 billion in the medium term. The…

4 Mar 2020 58 min

Tito in a tight spot

Tito takes a hard line at long last. The much-anticipated Budget Speech felt like Tito Mboweni has at last acted as an economist would by cutting state salaries, which although fiscally responsible, will come with a sting in the tail politically. The thorn in the side though is the R16b…

26 Feb 2020 1 hr 02 min

Bloomberg embarrasses Bernie

Mhlanganisi Madlongolwana joins us for a sizzling episode of The Burning Platform, and he unpacks the highlights and lowlights of Cyril’s 2020 SONA. Is the field of politics in South Africa too emotive to allow for constructive intellectual engagement? As SA finds itself leaving 'Ramaphoria' and that honeymoon period of…

19 Feb 2020 1 hr 04 min

SONA 2020 watch

The State Capture inquiry is moving forward slowly... why is it taking so long? If any prosecutions were to be made in the case, would that affect South Africa's outlook short term for citizens? Mandy Wiener details what she would like to hear from Cyril Rhamaposa at SONA. Along with…

12 Feb 2020 53 min

De Klerk & the Dems

Has the Iowa caucus proven that the democrats are a complete shambles? Kanthan Pillay details his lunch with FW de Klerk and the old National Party top brass. Donald Trump's impeachment has been dismissed, even after Romney crossed the floor. America’s foreign policy is clear - pro Saudi. Did the…

5 Feb 2020 40 min

SANEF in retrograde?

Following SANEF backing Daniel Friedman after his suspension, we look at whether they are fit for purpose in their current form? What does free speech mean, can we just say what we want to say or should we be regulated by laws? How do journalists help shape a society, what…

29 Jan 2020 1 hr 02 min

Saint Tito

Is South Africa putting its best foot forward in Davos? Is Tito Mboweni beyond the point of being a corruptible man? What will the effect of The Land Bank being downgraded by Moody’s be? There are guns in the hands of criminals, where do they come from? Should guns be…

22 Jan 2020 53 min

Not so Mutual Manuel

Dmitry Medvedev has resigned, what happens to Russia's government now? Is a lifetime president a democratic notion? Vladimir Putin... political mastermind or monster? Peter Moyo and Trevor Manuel's Old Mutual saga rolls on. Is Bernie Sanders sexist? How is Norway getting the past, present and future so right, while we're…

15 Jan 2020 49 min

ISIS Management

Kanthan Pillay is back for the first Burning Platform of 2020. Is America’s approach in Iran a disaster for the Middle East at large? Is ISIS manageable without Iran’s intervention? Is the DA imploding, or has it already imploded? Helen Zille seem to be at last chance saloon. Will the…

8 Jan 2020 53 min

Boris is your Uncle

Is our president dead in the water? Are open borders a viable option for Africa? Is David Mabuza a loser? Reactions to Boris becoming the UK PM... Twitter hype and election results are polls part. Nando's · The Burning Platform

18 Dec 2019 55 min

Donald & Boris

Kanthan Pillay is joined by Dumo Denga on the Burning Platform and they’re zooming in on the affairs of our eventful country, from the SAA business rescue to Eskom's load shedding rearing its ugly head again. Dumo thinks we could implement better methods of collecting tax where everyone benefits. Then,…

11 Dec 2019 51 min

Is a Complete Collapse of the Economy on the Cards?

Kanthan Pillay is joined by Mpiyakhe Dhlamini - an anarchy-capitalist, formerly a libertarian and formerly a socialist. The duo discuss Trump and the impeachment, and a potential recession in the horizon. Meanwhile, hot off the press, Minister Pravin Gordhan has announced what seems to be a bailout for a crippled…

4 Dec 2019 47 min

No Work, No Pay

On the back of the SAA strike, their disgruntled employees are now up in arms over being paid only half of their salaries. Kanthan Pillay joins in via Skype and weighs in on this with a logical explanation. Dali Mpofu and Tembeka Ngcukaitobi are on different ends of a legal…

27 Nov 2019 29 min

If it's not SAA it's Eskom

Kanthan Pillay is joined by Jan-Jan Joubert and they get into all sorts, including the impeachment hearings. In other news, there's a new sheriff at Eskom, but is he the right person to turn this failed state-owned entity around? Kanthan voices some strong opinions on this topic. What do you…

20 Nov 2019 54 min

Millennial Tears & Alcoholics

Journalist Qaanitah Hunter is in studio - she has covered some of the biggest political stories in SA and has recently put it all into a book titled 'Balance of Power: Ramaphosa and the future of South Africa'. SAA has seen its fair share of controversy and is back in…

13 Nov 2019 51 min

Are we just Reactionaries?

We’re joined by Law graduate Jamie Mighti, and he has a very interesting theory on how we could boost our workforce through empowering the next generation of leaders using coding. The team then air their opinions of Finance Minister Tito Mboweni, and the ways in which they think we could…

6 Nov 2019 1 hr 01 min

Saving a Drowning Eskom

Kanthan Pillay and Dawie Scholtz join Gareth for some topical conversation. With the recent spate of resignations and reshuffling in the Democratic Alliance, the panel give their analysis on the matter. On the back of yesterday’s Budget speech, the two guests weigh in with their opinions, and, we get their…

30 Oct 2019 49 min

Who holds the future of the DA in their hands?

Right off the back of the major resignations from the Democratic Alliance (DA), Kanthan Pillay chimes in on these decisions with Gareth, a few hours after Mmusi Maimane and Athol Trollip have stepped down. Journalist Kgothatso Madisa calls in to express what he experienced at the DA press conference. Could…

23 Oct 2019 56 min

Where to from here Mmusi?

Barry Bateman uttered some comments not so long ago regarding EFF leader Julius Malema. The Burning Platform team weigh in on his apology, and the stance Primedia has taken on this matter. The team also discuss the state of the DA, and what the future looks like for their leader…

16 Oct 2019 52 min

Keeping Cool like Duduzane

Gareth and Kanthan are joined by eNCA journalist Michael Appel, who gives his take on the State Capture Inquiry this week, and shares insight on Duduzane Zuma’s well-curated responses. An amended Employment Equity bill is on the cards, and Gareth seems to have some intel. Finally, the team get into…

9 Oct 2019 57 min