The Week In Perspective
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It’s been frantic week in the political economy with the dirty tricks bag being emptied against a reforming president clamping down on corruption.
Shortly after the arrest of former Transnet CEO Siyabonga Gama, disgraced former spy boss Arthur Fraser who was so central to former president Zuma’s State Capture network as outlined by journalist Jacques Pouw in President’s keepers, played the RET factions hand with curious looking charges of covering up theft against President Cyril Ramaphosa, which he has strongly denied while serious questions remain. Then this week the arrest of two of the Gupta brothers in Dubai. The NPA now has 60 days within which to apply for extradition and for all the unanswered questions seems seriously caught on the back foot here. And last night, the president played his own gambit, suspending public protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane with immediate effect. The move came a day before judgment in her case today seeking to block him from doing so.
It’s a high stakes game that the ANC is playing with the future of the country and delicate balance of the economy which is starting to show some encouraging pockets of green shoots as reform in energy starts to take hold as evidenced by the registration of 16 IPPs under the 100MW self gen exemption this week. And with first quarter GDP growth surprising markedly but subsequent high frequency data in mining, manufacturing and confidence disappointing.
Lots to discuss with Warwick Lucas Head of Galileo Securities; Raymond Parsons, professor in the School of Business and Governance at Northwest University & Isaah Mhlanga, Chief Economist at Alex Forbes.
Shortly after the arrest of former Transnet CEO Siyabonga Gama, disgraced former spy boss Arthur Fraser who was so central to former president Zuma’s State Capture network as outlined by journalist Jacques Pouw in President’s keepers, played the RET factions hand with curious looking charges of covering up theft against President Cyril Ramaphosa, which he has strongly denied while serious questions remain. Then this week the arrest of two of the Gupta brothers in Dubai. The NPA now has 60 days within which to apply for extradition and for all the unanswered questions seems seriously caught on the back foot here. And last night, the president played his own gambit, suspending public protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane with immediate effect. The move came a day before judgment in her case today seeking to block him from doing so.
It’s a high stakes game that the ANC is playing with the future of the country and delicate balance of the economy which is starting to show some encouraging pockets of green shoots as reform in energy starts to take hold as evidenced by the registration of 16 IPPs under the 100MW self gen exemption this week. And with first quarter GDP growth surprising markedly but subsequent high frequency data in mining, manufacturing and confidence disappointing.
Lots to discuss with Warwick Lucas Head of Galileo Securities; Raymond Parsons, professor in the School of Business and Governance at Northwest University & Isaah Mhlanga, Chief Economist at Alex Forbes.
