Paul Janisch

Lest we ever forget this old chestnut

Solidarity posted a video on YouTube of government spokesperson Jimmy Manyi, who was then the director general of labour, saying there was an “over-supply” of coloured people in the Western Cape.

He made the comment in March 2010.

Manyi later said he had been speaking in his capacity as Black Management Forum president.
SAPA

via m.news24.com

This is still vilely offensive.  Uttered by a vile piece of humanity.  Rumour has it that said personage is not going to be employed by the government soon.  I'll cut the South African business community a deal - I'll promise not to hire him and you promise not to hire him.  If we all don't hire him then perhaps he'll disappear in a heap of impoverishment and get the fuck out of our lives.

 

Selebi's release constitutional: Pull the other one

Not releasing terminally ill prisoners would be a serious violation of the Constitution, ANC chief whip Mathole Motshekga said on Friday.

"The Correctional Matters Amendment Act... ensures that the rights of offenders who are seriously and terminally ill are protected, and that they can request release on medical grounds," Motshekga said in a statement.

"To not release terminally ill prisoners would not only be a serious violation of the Constitution, but a morally repugnant abuse of human rights."

via www.news24.com

Does the ANC think that the voting public and taxpayers are the biggest bunch of fucking idiots? Unfortunately I think they do. The voting public will have the last laugh.  The question is when.

However if the convicted corrupt ex-commissioner kicks the bucket in the next month then we'll have to admit that the ruling party has the ability to rule.

The DTI asserts and tells us about applicability of industry charters

You've got to love this statement

the dti is the only empowered and competent authority to pronounce on the application of Sector Codes, the Codes of Good Practice and any other relevant matter with regards to B-BBEE

We can now officially blame the DTI for all the little spelling mistakes, Dilly, more spelling mistakes, long bouts of silence when clarity is required, more spelling mistakes, backwards and twisted logic and more spelling mistakes – oh yes and Dilly. This is almost the same as the ANC describing themselves as "selfless". Be that as it may – the DTI is............. competent.

To find out what this is all about read the attachment – it's actually well written (id est the sentences flow, the spelling mistakes are not apparent etc) and it does actually explain when a charter is to be used and not the DTI's codes. Still defies business sense though - but that really isn't the DTI's mandate, well at least not in this country.

Oh yes - it also makes legislation retrospective.  And this is unconstitutional - I'll let  Andrea Minnaar, senior associate at ENS explain it

The habit of bringing legislation into effect retrospectively or retroactively conflicts with two key South African constitutional principles, being the rule of law and the principle of separation of powers.

The rule of law is entrenched in section 1 of the Constitution of South Africa (“the Constitution”) which states that:

“The Republic of South Africa is one, sovereign, democratic state founded on the following values:
(a) Human dignity, the achievement of equality and the advancement of human rights and freedoms.
(b) Non-racialism and non-sexism;
(c) Supremacy of the constitution and the rule of law.
(d) Universal adult suffrage, a national common voters roll, regular elections and a multi-party system of democratic government, to ensure accountability, responsiveness and openness.”

One of the applications of the rule of law is that a person should be able to know the law in order to be able to arrange his actions accordingly.  In this regard Mokgoro J, in her concurring judgment in the case of President of the Republic of South Africa v Hugo 1997 (4)(SA 1 (CC), held that:

“The need for accessibility, precision and general application flow from the concept of the rule of law.  A person should be able to know of the law, and be able to conform his or her conduct to the law.”

Nahas wavers on NEEEF

PRIME Minister Nahas Angula announced in Parliament this week that he is re-inviting input and suggestions in order to bring about changes to the New Equitable Economic Empowerment Framework.

After making his statement, the prime minister distributed the amended version for further scrutiny by legislators whom he requested to forward comments and inputs to him before the end of this month.

via www.observer.com.na

If anybody has a copy of the amended version please would you send it to me.

It wasn't you, it was the wind

Perhaps mother nature is unhappy with our President (although what he presides over has yet to extend to his responsibilites as leader of South Africa).

The narrative on this picture said

Newspaper Poster In Corlett Drive,Johannesburg "An unfortunate 'little' puff of wind!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then there is this picture that represents the ANC in all its ironic glory.  Sort of like Mugabe saying that he really loves white farmers.  And the wind - hot air really, probably enough to warm South Africa today with a complete Eskom power failure.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Apologies are extended to Petit Cheval who had a song out in the 80s that is the same as the title of this post.  They are worth checking out and you can buy the album here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Udge and Dilly on the retail ‘needs BEE charter’

Ajay Lalu, the managing director of Black Lite Consulting, said yesterday that the government had little or no leverage on broad-based BEE in the retail sector.

He criticised the sector’s enterprise development programmes and employee share schemes, saying some of them were used to sugar-coat empowerment programmes as they did not fundamentally transform the supply chain.

via www.iol.co.za

But wait it gets worse.  Dilly gets to say something in the same article

Andile Thloaele, the chief executive of consultancy Inforcomm, said the reason retailers lagged behind with BEE programmes was because they were not incentivised. He also added that BEE guidelines were too diluted to get the sector to fully comply.

A compendium of patsy experts.  I cannot imagine why anyone (other than a parastatal with a large budget and no sense) would want to make use of the services of Udge and Dilly.  Udge has the most bizarre agenda, the crux of which is fundamentally anti-business.  It seems from this article that he has a paw in the drafting of the new mythical codes, viz

He criticised the sector’s enterprise development programmes and employee share schemes, saying some of them were used to sugar-coat empowerment programmes as they did not fundamentally transform the supply chain.

And Dilly - well Dilly was on the steering committee of the ICT Charter, a document that demonstrates very little knowledge of anything really.

ICT Charter - Andile's contribution to round about nothing

Picture the scene.  A bearded man kneels before his bed and utters this prayer to a deity of his choosing.  "Dear God (name chosen for convenience), please can you make sure that the brilliant work I do as minister of trade and industry has a long and positive impact on this wonderful country called South Africa."  Now God, who is not one to answer prayers directly, decides to offer Rob a little bit of advice to ensure that Rob's legacy is ensured.  God replies (in a clear, impressive voice)

Rob - get rid of the twits who draft your BEE charters and then perhaps people won't talk about you at all when you are unceremoniously fired from your job.  Yes Rob, most people think you are incompetent and by surrounding yourselves with a courtroom full of idiots you are perpetuating this perception.

Alas - Rob doesn't read this blog or the daily press and continues to employ the Andiles of this world as advisers.  And so his name ends up on these shambolic documents.  What is of course so strange is that Rob is happy to gazette a myriad dodgy charters and yet will not gazette the only one that makes sense, has been spell-checked and is properly thought out - viz the FSC.

I have now had the privilege of looking through the ICT Charter because  I have clients that will need to start looking at it soon.  Besides the glaring errors in spelling, grammar etc there is this mistaken belief that if you put up the targets then you will "accelerate the pace of transformation in the sector". Id est (page 21)

The ICT Sector Codes deviates (sic) from the Generic Codes on the ownership target which has been increased to 30%. The substance of the deviation of the ICT sector Code from the Codes of Good Practice (25.1% +1) is the recognition by the ICT sector to accelerate the pace of transformation in the sector, thus ensuring more companies in (verb missing) the hands of black people. The ICT sector believes that given the pace of transformation and black ownership in the sector, it may take longer to bring about real transformation in the sector if the sector is to adopt the 25%+ 1 compliance target. Tllis is also to recognize the  uniqueness of the ICT sector and that it cannot be treated as any other sector, hence the deviation from the compliance target in the codes of good practice.  

Don't you just love this?  Make the targets higher so that people will transform quicker!!  What profound form of logic is this?  That people aren't really going for the 25% in the rest of the economy is somewhat missed. Rob loves this - he thinks that people will transform faster if you deduct points off their scorecard.  God - would you like to reconsider your suggestion to Rob, perhaps you might tell him that there is no hope for him and his legacy.

Here is the scorecard summarised.  I double checked it - but if you come across Rob-like mistakes in it please don't blame him, it's my fault.  Let me know and I'll fix it up. 

 

Sipho Ngcobo - The Perfect Storm (well I'll be)

What they forget is that the charter, which is part of the Petroleum Products Act, empowers government to curtail their ability to import crude oil as well as to revoke their licences. Perhaps they haven’t forgotten because when the chips are down they will play emotional blackmail on all of us. They will threaten to disinvest. But that doesn’t matter because wherever you go there is legislation.

via www.moneyweb.co.za

Yes but Siphon (sic), if the government plays this card then how are all the government fatcats going to drive their very expensive state-sponsored cars without fuel. How is Zuma going to get him and his concubines to Nkandla? And finally how are the motorcades going to continue killing people on a regular basis.

Threaten away - but I cannot see how Peters is going to solve this problem by removing licences.

Empowerment uber alles. Not going to work, time for a new game plan.