We were blindsided by the Guptas and missed the red flags on the family’s influence over appointments in government and state-owned entities. And we allowed the State Security Agency to serve political and factional interests, leading to the recent unrest that claimed 300 lives and caused a R50bn loss to the economy.
President Cyril Ramaphosa conceded to all these in his second day of evidence before the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture, casting some light on the reason for moving Ayanda Dlodlo in his Cabinet reshuffle last week and placing state Security under the Presidency.
His evidence drew a clear line between state capture and how it impacted national security with the destruction in July. We had to pay in lives and livelihoods before action was taken. And Judge Zondo rightly wanted to know what reassure do we have that the state capture nightmare won’t happen again?
Ramaphosa cited the Zondo Commission as a defining moment and said the strengthening of structures of the ANC and of the party’s Integrity Commission in particular, should give comfort. That’s a start, but real reassurance would be if the Zuma-era armed militia be held accountable. Let’s start with Dlodlo.
Here’s a roundup of the world’s top and most interesting headlines:
SA Business
Medupi explosion: Sabotage ruled out, but the R2bn repair price could fall on energy customers – Daily Maverick
Have a 750ml beer cost at least R25, and SA may save more than 20,000 lives, researchers say – Business Insider
Steinhoff sues UK businessman for R1.6bn for allegedly conspiring with Marcus Jooste – Fin24 (for subscribers)
Global Business
Black market for fake vaccine cards thrives on Telegram – Mashable
Amazon moves production of Lord of the Rings TV series to UK from New Zealand – Sky News
Disney+ streaming service to launch in South Africa – BusinessTech
Markets
Why are meme tokens so popular in 2021? – The European Business Review
Dollar holds firm near 4-month high on Fed tapering bets – Reuters
Oil down as COVID-19 concerns continue to dampen fuel demand outlook – Investing.com
Opinion
South Africa’s basic income versus jobs debate: a false dilemma – The Conversation
Electing ethically compromised Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula as parliamentary Speaker is a dangerous conflation of governing party and state – Daily Maverick
Same old funding model can’t keep South African cities going or serve residents – The Conversation
*Download the news aggregator app SAccess, available on Google Play and the App Store, to stay on top of business and market news from around the world.
