The Week That Was

Gerald Potash,

Hello again,

A great deal of our news this week has been about the judgement from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) brought by SA against Israel. Ramaphosa wearing his keffiyah (have you ever seen any ANC cadres wearing scarves before?) jumped out of his chair in joy, in the convention centre where he and his cronies watched the judgement on a very big screen – to hug the Deputy Palestinian Ambassador. (Just as a matter of interest there is no country called Palestine). The ecstatic joy from the SA Government has been effusive. 

But what SA asked for is not what the judgement delivered.

The Jewish Board of Deputies (SAJBD) has let it be known that SA actually lost their case in so much as they asked for a complete cessation of all military action from Israel in Gaza. This the court did not agree to and their decision on this  matter is likely to take many years before a judgement is delivered. The court did demand an immediate release of all hostages. 

We are still waiting! 

Are you surprised?

What is apparent from the goings-on here is that SA has coupled themselves with a terrorist organisation and is more and more choosing the ‘bad guys’ like Russia and Iran (David Bullard calls them repulsive regimes in his Politicsweb article) to side with in disputes rather than with the Western democracies.  How long before America, our largest trading partner wakes up and pulls the plug on our participating in the AGOA contracts which are so beneficial to our country?   

More and more the ANC and Ramaphosa are conspicuously siding with the Muslim terrorists and probably Cyril feels that he needs the local Muslim votes to stay in power. There is no doubt that the court application has won him and his Party huge support from that section of our population.

Zuma has been suspended from the ANC, the party he ran for so many years. On Monday the NEC (87 members) of the ANC met and decided his campaigning for another political party is the last straw and he has finally been torpedoed.  There is likely to be electoral support for the new Party, MK, mostly in his home province of KZN. Zuma’s active campaigning is intolerable for the ANC and so this is  the bullet he received. Not his corruption, nor the devastating State Capture with his close buddies the Guptas, nor his jail time, but what the Sec-Gen Fikile Mbalula declared was the final straw was Zuma’s campaigning for umKonte weSizwe, (MK)  was enough to get him turfed out of the Party.

Even the NYTimes carried the story of Jacob Zuma this week. (Thanks Avrim)

The R29 million he owes the State for legal expenses has not been mentioned this week but Rico did a fine cartoon for Business Maverick:

Our Deputy President, Paul Mashatile has been called before the integrity committee of the ANC to answer questions of his involvement with a property scheme where the company of his best pal made R90 million in one day. You buy for X  and sell to the government for Y and go out for dinner in the evening. This stinks but I’m not holding my breath that anything will come of this enquiry. It never does. 

Mashatile is also being investigated for the properties he lives in Johannesburg & in Cape Town. Both properties are his son-in-law’s and have a market value of over R60 million. That is right at the very top end of the property market. Oh, to be a cadre and get contracts from the government!

It seems to be his best buddy who is getting all the contracts. He is Edwin Sodi and is known to be a huge benefactor of the ANC.

I wonder why?

John Steenhuisen, leader of the DA wants Mashatile fired by Ramaphosa and criminally investigated by our SIU (Special Investigating Unit).

Lord Peter Hain was at the UCT Summer School where Judges Goldstone & Albie Sacks & Adv Paul Hoffman SC  contributed to his lecture from the audience. They believe corruption is the killer and must be stamped out. Hain believes that there is corruption at every level of our government and urgent steps must be taken to contain what is going on at all levels. He pointed out that notwithstanding Ramaphosa’s promise more than a year ago to institute the recommendations of the Zondo Commission he has typically done nothing and there are still members of the cabinet with  swords hanging over their heads. Hain is campaigning (not only here) for a Corruption Court. 

Yesterday  Transparency International (TI) released its latest  index. Their figures show that SA is more corrupt today under Ramaphosa than it was under Zuma.

Iqbal Survé is suing the President and several other connected governmental  bodies for R50 billion over what he calls the obstructing of his company, Sagamartha from listing on foreign exchanges. A week or two ago Sekunjala (also a Survé company) also let it be known that it was suing the top shots for hampering its business and closing (irregularly it contends) its bank accounts. Oh, the banks are also being sued by Survé. 

Survé’s newspapers are doing so badly that litigation is his last hope to keep going. 

Zapiro, for the Daily Maverick got this one just right, don’t you think? Its a real classic:

El Al no longer has direct flights to SA from Israel.  It says the route is no longer viable. 

The Palestinian National football team is coming to Cape Town where it will receive free stadium usage and sponsorship for its matches. They will play invitation matches against WP and SA in Athlone.

Wine exports fell 17% last year…….because our inflation and Cape Town docks’ lack of ability to handle fruit & wine exports. 

My notable coffee catch-ups this week was with John and Carol and yesterday, with Brian. John & Carol are ‘ex-pats’ from Houston and come for an annual visit. I try to make it a ‘must’ to attend meeting up because they are such a lovely couple and are so interesting.

Brian and I go back a long way. We even shared an overseas business trip together. Brian had a story to tell and then we got on to politics and the more than two hours over lunch flashed by. 

What Brian highlighted was the decreasing value of the Rand. It’s not easy to be retired with prices going up and the value of your retirement package shrinking because of our inflation.

We watched much of the tennis final in Melbourne on Sunday. Now that was tennis!

On Tuesday night Bafana Bafana pulled off their greatest surprise ever by beating Africa’s top ranked team, Marocco  2-0 in the first of the knock out rounds of the Africa Cup, after just managing to qualify for the last 16.

They are now in the quarter finals. 

Spurs lost on Friday night in the 4th round of the FA Cup.The game was late and I am pleased I didn’t watch the whole thing. We were badly outplayed by Man City who really are a top class outfit.

Last night Spurs played Brentford and gained a narrow 3-2 win and so earned a very necessary 3 points. So
COYS

As always,                                                                                             

Gerald