Dear Premier Lesufi, I read with interest your recent declarations involving the future of our province, Gauteng. It seems you are living in a dream — far from the grim reality of our communal existence.
Gauteng, the supposed heartbeat of South Africa, is struggling to pump life into the veins of its residents. You speak of potential and progress, yet our metros, which should be strong, vibrant centres of development, are plagued by infrastructural fractures.
Power cuts plague our lives, with load reduction silencing our homes for hours on end. Sewerage systems have failed us, rupturing and pouring health hazards into our streets. We navigate roads filled with potholes. We are sinking into decay under your watch.
While we acknowledge that investment fuels economic growth and sustainability, it is crucial to remind you of a salient fact: charity begins at home. Shouldn't we be addressing our internal issues first? Creating fertile ground for growth, a conducive environment where service delivery shines brightly, signalling to investors that we are worthy of their trust and money?
Our streets reveal scenes that would make even the hardiest investor shudder. The blight of crime, the horrific prevalence of GBV, failing service delivery and skyrocketing unemployment rates are not invitations to investors. They are deterrents. They are the stench that lingers around our potential, making a mockery of it.
You expect the world to invest in us, to help extricate us from the rat's nest the ANC administration has entangled us in. But investors are not charity organisations; they are business entities. They seek assurance, stability and growth.
Enough is enough. The harsh truth must be embraced. It's not enough to expect others to deliver us from the crisis we find ourselves in. It's time to start rectifying our internal issues, revivifying our economy with state funds. Engage competent hands, foster transparency and move beyond political rhetoric to actualise the dreams you so vividly describe.
— Danny Maimane, Soweto
Toss the budget out the window
The finance minister may as well toss the 2025 budget out the window. Due to Trump's tariffs, all the assumptions behind the budget are obsolete. There will be zero GDP growth and most likely a recession of minus 2% to 8% (or more).
The automotive industry will crash, our citrus fruit exports to the US will collapse and many other sectors will lose US sales. Many thousands will lose their jobs.
The hole in the budget will probably grow by 5-10 times as business taxes fall. VAT revenues will also fall as workers cut back on everything.
My home country, Canada, grows zero citrus fruit and gets all its citrus from the US and Mexico. Canadians will not buy US citrus now that we have been hit with 25% tariffs on everything. There is no exemption for Canada, Mexico or China. One car plant has already been closed.
South African citrus fruit is the solution, as well as avocados, mangos and sugar.
— B Fowler, Montagu, WC
Poignant memories of tragic loss
I have vague memories of the Westdene Dam disaster (Ideas, April 13), so thank you Leonie Wagner for bringing it back to life, 40 years on. A poignant recall indeed of the loss of lives of the ill-fated schoolchildren, and of those who survived. Strength to the families.
— Brijlall Ramguthee, Durban
Don't blame the constitution
The irony of our beloved country is that we missed a golden opportunity to transform South Africa into a flowering, prosperous rainbow nation. What happened to Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu’s vision of a better life for all?
Now the ANC requires more money (VAT) from exhausted taxpayers, but without any hope of improving the quality of people`s lives. Their only desire is to keep their snouts in the trough. We sit with an inflated government where corruption and greed have become the norm. The ANC knows their days are numbered and filling their pockets is a last-minute attempt to satisfy their greed — and bugger the poor!
In the process, budget money is squandered due to red tape, bottlenecks and bungling cadres. Now Paul Mashatile has the audacity to blame the constitution for the ANC’s woes. To have the constitution changed would play neatly into the hands of corrupt politicians — the likes of Jacob Zuma and Co. If there is no serious protest against such an ill-considered proposal, a failed state awaits us. The founding fathers of our democracy will certainly come back to haunt us. The MK Party and the EFF cannot be trusted either, unless you want the grim reaper to pay us a visit. There is a fork in the road, and we have to steer away from corruption and mismanagement. Our people, and especially the poor, deserve a better life.
— Marius Krige, Hermanus
Moeletsi Mbeki for US ambassador
Choosing the next South African ambassador to the US is a formidable task considering the unstable relations with President Donald Trump. Moeletsi Mbeki, a polished intellectual, would be a powerful choice to restore relations with America.
He is an impartial personality who evaluates political issues and ideas with objectivity, fairness and without bias before formulating an opinion. He can communicate effectively and has the knowledge, judgment, integrity and interpersonal skills needed to engage with members of the Trump administration. The US under Trump will only engage with countries that view China and Russia as a threat to global peace.
Poor relationships between nations can often lead to costly confrontations, with immense consequences for the world at large. Mbeki would be resilient under pressure. In an era of intense globalisation he has the ability to restore sanity and civility to relations with the US.
— Farouk Araie, Joburg
Prevent attempts to silence journalists
I refer to recent articles about protection orders being used to silence journalists and activists.
I would like to suggest that the solution lies in the Constitutional Court warning our lower courts against accepting cases in which the respondent is likely to be able to claim that they were acting in the public interest.
If the legislature had wanted companies and government departments to have the ability to prevent journalists and activists from writing about them, it would not have placed the mechanism for doing so in the hands of the family court.
— Terence Grant, Cape Town
When will the blame game end?
There are two issues I would like to raise with Mr Sefara about his column in the April 13 edition of The Sunday Times.
You write “there is much we can still blame apartheid and colonialism for — and, indeed, we must do so for many years to come”. When and under what circumstances will blaming apartheid and colonialism for the failings of the ANC-led government end?
You accuse the DA of disrespect and for “showing our president the middle finger”. Really? Is the issue here not perhaps the DA’s way of dealing with the arrogance of the ANC, who will not entertain any idea of governance other than their own?
— NB Wynne Cole, Winston Park
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