Former African National Congress (ANC) MP Andrew Feinstein’s arms deal revelations in his new book, After the Party, (added to those of Terry Crawford-Browne and Patricia de Lille) have put the final nail in the coffin of any idea of the ANC being a party of high moral standing and credibility.

Nelson Mandela’s glorious “rainbow” has turned into violent and threatening storm clouds.

While our country is bombarded daily with the terrors of murder, rape, robbery and corruption — especially from within the ranks of the ANC — the reality is that our caviar comrades are not much more than a bunch of lazy, arrogant and corrupt individuals, offering little, and pilfering all they can — a typically autocratic and despotic regime.

The hope of our beloved country emerging from decades of racial and political oppression was just a short-lived fantasy.

Further, reports by Moeletsi Mbeki, brother to Thabo and deputy chairman of the South African Institute of International Affairs, say our economy “is in a slow, long-term decline ... and would soon be nowhere near the dominant economic position it occupies in Africa today”.

The industries that are surviving today are doing so in spite of constant government interference, and will not be able to survive forever under such divisive political constraints.

While our prospects are potentially abysmal under the ANC’s misguided and mismanaged influence, it’s critical that we pressure municipal and state structures to be accountable for their actions, and not just see the financial benefits of complicit behaviour — which were so eagerly fostered under National Party rule.

Mark Wade
Durban

With acknowledgements to Mark Wade and Business Day.