[imagesource: GCIS]

It’s one thing writing to your bosses at SpaceX, for example, or penning an open letter so that the general public might understand the stress and strain of being a doctor during a global pandemic.

The urge to write an open letter to a politician has never struck me because I understand that it’s very much an exercise in futility. You don’t climb to the top of the food chain by listening to the concerns of the people.

Open letters directed at President Cyril Ramaphosa were hugely popular during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdowns. Now, from way out of left field, comes another from Mark Barnes, the current Executive Chairperson of the Purple Group and former CEO of the South African Post Office.

In other words, he knows a thing or two about running a doomed government institution.

It’s titled ‘A Second Chance’ on The Daily Maverick and because it’s been a while since we’ve gone down this open letter road, I’ll nibble.

These things always start with a greeting (Mr President) before launching into the matters at hand:

South Africa is on the verge of total socio-economic collapse. Nonetheless, foreign capital (in abundance) sits patiently at our borders waiting to invest—waiting for certainty to replace the clutter and chaos of political and economic disarray that currently permeates this beautiful country.

We South Africans are also waiting.  We want common purpose, we want economic dignity and we want our national pride back.

We need fundamental change, before it’s too late.

Barnes offers 10 suggestions for ideas Ramaphosa could pitch at our next State of the Nation Address.

These include re-constituting cabinet portfolios and ministries to appoint “experience and merit, not popularity nor connections” (hit the road, Fikile), exempting all foreign direct investment from the prescriptions of the Public Finance Management Act, and passing legislation to enable and govern the formation of public-private partnerships.

The fifth and sixth suggestions centre on justice and municipalities:

Require and enable fast-tracking within the judicial process, through delegating certain final and binding authority levels to lower courts, without higher recourse. Adopt a policy of zero tolerance for incompetence or purposeful delays in the execution of justice.

Devolve certain decision making, capital funding authority and contractual capacity to municipal level to fast-track local needs. Do this in partnership with specialist operators and capital providers. Likewise for provinces.

The current elephant in the darkened room is Eskom. As we prepare for a week of stage five load shedding or thereabouts, and talk of the dangers of a national ‘total blackout’, what’s the plan there?

Barnes suggests we rejig our approach to infrastructure projects across the board:

Allocate capital and expertise to the projects that will most enable our local economic growth and increase our export earnings. Obvious examples include ESKOM (energy more broadly) – cancel the debt, raise capital for new forms of energy – make electricity free (you’ll get it back in taxes); PRASA – our economic arteries have to function, efficiencies of rail over road are obvious, for people and cargo transport; LANDBANK – re-constitute functional, affordable, broad base access to reasonably priced, tailored term finance, which is essential for local food security and will enable vast international market opportunities … the list is long. Long term structural change must also be tabled for education, health care, personal safety, water security … another long list.

Free electricity? I’ll have what he’s smoking.

Meanwhile, in the real world, Eskom has applied to energy regulator Nersa to hike tariffs by 32% on April 1 next year.

Barnes adds that we should “discard the BEE constructs that favour elite selection and enrichment” and do our best via state institutions to “create an exciting investment environment, which screams “Welcome to South Africa!”

Any open letter worth its salt also finishes with a stirring call to action:

Make these changes, Mr. President, and we will rise from the ashes that otherwise await us. It will likely require a majority in Parliament – I would expect the right coalition to naturally emerge, driven by the common sense of it all. We want to move on from the past and embrace a better future.

We’d better get started, before the hour is too late.

Yes, let’s get to work at once.

Just gotta wait until this two-and-a-half hour load shedding block is done.

Join us next week for more futile screaming into the void.

[source:dailymav]