Condemn those who corrupted BEE, not the policy itself

The problem with B-BBEE and AA is that the previously disadvantaged will forever carry around the stigma of not being chosen for their excellence but for the colour of their skin. If you really want to prove how great you are, compete against everyone on a fair and even playing field.

This is a callous lie: "Calling for BEE’s abandonment and deracialising transformation deliberately obfuscates the fact that economic exclusion was race-based and the impact of this continues to reverberate around the country." The precise reason there is a call for BEE's abandonment is because it does not result in redress. Its a way to channel huge wealth to a connected few. Many (if not all) participants call for its replacement by proper redress - uplifting the (black) poor.

The basics of BEE are good and needed to rectify imbalances. In its current form, it has left massive opportunities for uncompetitive behaviour, which did not go unnoticed by many people. As a lot of procurement is via Government departments, and their leaders seem to show a total lack of respect or discipline for their roles in the country, we have gone from bad to worse. Skills need to be put in the key positions instead of cadres, whatever their skin colour is. The fish rots from the head.

Had BBEEE worked initially AND had a sunset clause, that would be OK to redress past sins. But it has not worked and there is no sunset clause, and they want to double down, and they want it for the forseable future and beyond. To me this is an admission by them that they are inferior because this indicates that they want a crutch to enable them to cut it in the real world. If I were them I would find this deeply insulting.

The concept was noble, the execution not. 30 years later, the economy has tanked, unemployment soared, and a few billionaires created from the ANC elite. Instead of giving shares to them, it would have been better to have given those shares in a pyramid format - the lowest paid workers getting the most, the fatcats, the least. The myriad compliance issues - BEE included - make it increasingly difficult to invest in SA. Compare SA's Orange Basin oil industry to Namibia's for a stark example.

All BEE in its current form has done is impoverish the country. Inflated government or local government tenders are awarded to cadres, who then subcontract the work out (sometimes if the work actually gets done) to competent companies. BEE policies should insist on no subcontracting, so the BEE recipients actually create viable legitimate businesses that will create generational wealth. This however is a pipe dream with the get rich quick mentality of the Gucci brigade.

Just to add, the entire system lent itself to abuse, unless strictly monitored - and it wasn't. And isn't, despite Cyril's waffling garbage about reform and renewal. Hence unscrupulous tenderpreneurs abusing state procurement using a BEE figleaf to cover their tracks: in its current format, BEE is a vehicle for grand theft, as we're finding out with Tembisa hospital (as a current, grotesque, example). Legitimate black businesses don't get much more than their white counterparts.

The concept of the need to transform the economy should not be in question however the way BEE has been both formulated and abused highlights that the legislation as it stands does not fit the purpose. It focusses on short cuts to wealth creation, promoting tenderisation rather than hard work and the long term development of businesses. As a result those “marginalised” will forever have to rely on the next tender rather than the rewards accruing from a long term business development

I agree that BEE was necessary but it can’t be implied that it was a great policy that has been abused. BEE forced my retirement at 60, the age at which many corporate professionals switch from active work to mentoring and skills transfer. So BEE directly caused loss of skills transfer. I wanted involvement in a mentoring program, but couldn’t because I had to register on the National Treasury data base which was impossible because I am a white male. So BEE directly blocked skills transfer

The problem goes beyond abuse at the top levels. At all levels it has been very destructive of competence. As a very small company BEE always tops the list of compliance requirements when I am vetted as a vendor to companies. This is followed by tax, financial, then various insurance requirements. In most cases the vetting never gets as far as checking my competence to actually do the work. BEE far outweighs competence in contract awards. So BEE is structured to bring about incompetence.

BEE is blatently racist.

BEE is blatently racist.

Firstly, racial redress and affirmative action was necessary and correct, and the first iteration of BEE was helpful. The middle class is now more black than anything else, including the writer. But it is 30 years on, and the policy itself has become a stumbling block to growth and an enabler of corruption. The mere fact that a BEE company may charge 25% more than any other company and still win the tender is policy - enabling of entrenched corruption. You do not need BEE to help the poor.

To continue, I agree that legislated change was necessary at the start of democracy, and it achieved a lot. Most top end private schools now have more black pupils than other, most companies now have more black employees than not. All in all it helped establish a demographically representative middle class. Which was necessary. But now what is most imperative is to grow the economy and uplift the true poor with voucher systems or poor specific, not race specific, measures.

Lastly - the only people fighting for the continuation of BEE and doubling down on punitive, business destroying measures are the few upper middle class beneficiaries of BEE. In a country with 8% white people you do not need BEE to have more black senior managers and more black business owners and more black share holders. All you need is to grow the economy. A growing economy with more new businesses, more open positions will automatically have more black people fill those positions. Stats101.

Pikoli misses the point. BEE is, by definition, racist. Using racism to fight racism doesn't work. The problem is that we have people who are disadvantaged - NOW, in the present. That is what we should be addressing. Not things that stopped happening 35 years ago. BEE should not be a Holy Grail. There are other, non-racist ways, to address the problems. The beneficiaries would still be mostly black.

The distinction has become irrelevant.

Apartheid was repugnant, and so is apartheid in reverse. While transformation is important, it should not trump non-racialism. Race-based policies are not only morally wrong but are nobbling the economy. Shame on Daily Maverick for promoting this kind of analysis

Calls to scrap BEE ignore that corruption and enrichment by connected elites are symptoms of ANC misrule, not of the policy’s critics. After three decades, BEE has entrenched a small politically linked class while leaving millions excluded. True transformation needs transparency, competition and growth — not perpetual racial engineering used as a political tool. It’s been so badly warped that only a complete scrapping and honest redesign can restore fairness and credibility.