New Age2.png anti-Zuma is anti-ANC Yonela Diko, The New Age, Johannesburg, 21 January 2016 Whenever I try to pin down the issues that warrant this anti-Zuma campaign (ZumaMustFall), the specific reasons that make it necessary, the specific causes which we might feel bring it credence, the conversation with its champions always seem to follow a path of infinite regress. Do you want him to fall because many South Africans can't get jobs and can't upskill themselves to available jobs? But market distortions are predominantly the reason for this. Or perhaps it's because many children are on drugs? Perhaps it's because of your warm concern that peoples homes have no heat and no decent living space? Maybe you can try to avoid such questions because the bell is also tolling for thee. It's safer to choose something esoteric as the rand/dollar exchange rate as an indulgence. Now, Let me reaffirm, for all time, Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma is the president of the ANC and the President of the Republic of South Africa. Zuma is a through and through product of the liberation struggle and the pleasantly changing form of this our country, son of the soil, who like many of us has known his fair share of adversity and uncertainty in life. Don't ever let the temporary enclave of the Presidency make you forget that. Zuma is that South African who, despite the megalomania of many who harbour illusions about their skills and capacity, actually contested the ANC presidency and won, right in the midst of a great recession, an economy at its weakest since the great depression of 1929, bringing the South African ship to the other side of the shore. Zuma is the standard-bearer of the ANC. In 2009, the year Zuma assumed the presidency of the republic, was the toughest year for any president to take office. The Great Recession was at its calamitous worst; means of exchange were frozen, countries could not sell their produce, they could not pay their debts and they were shedding jobs at a rate not seen since 1929. Zuma's administration, to halt the disaster, began measures that would save our means of production and exchange. Despite these efforts, Zuma, the ANC, and all South Africans knew that no matter how many jobs they would save or create post-2009, there'd still be millions more waiting, worried about feeding their own kids, trying to keep their hopes alive. Zuma believes, with no doubt, that we can build a new South African economy, driven by fairness and creativity, by education and by working together towards a common goal and a shared vision. Again, despite all these efforts, there remain those who want to push the now discredited views of the make-up of the economy. You have people who suggest that all those who are doing well, all those who amount to anything, all are completely self-made. There is nobody who was born in a log cabin he built himself. Here is what Zuma and the ANC believe in. We believe in business and the government actually working together to promote growth and broadly share prosperity. We believe that extending the ladder of opportunity up and down the social spectrum and economic empowerment is both morally right and good economics. Now, what is puzzling lately, and this may well be all that this ZumaMustFall is about, because we are a country that had all the reasons to hate but did not, is the level of hate for our president. In a country with a history of genocide, to hate someone for choosing a different approach to yours is a betrayal of all that this country has overcome. The time when politics move away from issues to the person, it degenerates. When times are tough and people are frustrated and angry and hurting and uncertain the politics of constant conflict may be good. But this is a race to the bottom that does not work. What works in the real world is cooperation. What works is cooperation, business and government, foundations and universities, all working together. We hear a lot of talk daily about how the president is bad for the economy, how the ANC wants everybody to be dependent on the government. This could not be further from the truth. What is bad for the economy are market distortions which have given us almost oligopolies in every sector of the economy, crowding out new entries. In every industry you have top four companies, whether it's construction, banks or mining, that dominate almost all of the market share. How are we supposed to expand economic participation in such an environment? Every economist worth his salt will tell you that with a market economy working properly there would be more companies of almost equal size in every industry making modest profits, unless there is collusion and distortion that seek to keep the wealth for the few. Zuma must be given the space to correct the markets, even if his decisions seem abrupt. It is better to be criticised for change than for keeping a predominantly unfair status quo that only seeks to serve a few. . Yonela Diko is the ANC Western Cape media liaison officer. He writes in his personal capacity From: <http://tnaepaper.co.za/DRIVE/main%20edition/21012016/epaperpdf/18.pdf> http://tnaepaper.co.za/DRIVE/main%20edition/21012016/epaperpdf/18.pdf -- -- You are subscribed. This footer can help you. Please POST your comments to [email protected] or reply to this message. You can visit the group WEB SITE at http://groups.google.com/group/yclsa-eom-forum for different delivery options, pages, files and membership. 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