Various readers complained to us about not receiving the promised guaranteed return on their investment in the company. And because Nomzamo was a previous winner of DAFF’s female entrepreneur award and PBO was subsequently funded by the KZN department of agriculture and rural development, we thought it necessary to report on the matter.
We were hailed as heroes by investors for highlighting their plight, but in the Khozas’ eyes we are villains – guilty of, amongst others, racism, as we are supposedly trying to destroy a successful black farmer. Conveniently, they forget that the investors we’re helping are black. The story made me think about various high-profile individuals who are hailed as heroes by some and seen as villians by others.
In the political sphere, Robert Mugabe is one such individual. In agriculture, biotechnology is seen by some as a threat to biodiversity and ecosystems, while others see it as a revolutionary means to increase yield and profit. By the time you read this, President Jacob Zuma would have delivered his State of the Nation Address – if Julius Malema gave him the chance.
Judging from the theme of his address, ‘Twenty years of a democratic parliament’, the chances are high that Zuma will spend a great deal of time meditating on all that the ANC has done to alleviate poverty and right the wrongs of the past: the so-called ‘good-news’ story. We’ll hear about the houses and schools built, the increase in social welfare spending, and so on.
To those on the receiving end of the state’s largesse, the ruling party is a hero. However, those who have experienced crumbling infrastructure, crime and poor service delivery might not be so quick to sing its praises. According to Statistics SA, no fewer than 27 million people or 54% of the population live on R779 or less per month. Of these, 10,7 million survive on
R335 per month or less.
Meanwhile, load shedding has cost the economy R3 billion and one million jobs.The poor and desperate are in need of a hero, and in their eyes the ANC-led government is the main or only organisation fulfilling that role. That taxpayers’ money is being used is besides the point; at least they are perceived as doing something.
The tragedy is that South Africa has the potential to be so much greater. Government has admitted that it cannot be that hero on its own; it needs the private sector, and with commercial agriculture so often branded as the villain, this is the ideal opportunity to change its public image.
