We can effect social change

The year 2015 is drawing to a close and it is that time when we reflect on how the year has been. Indeed we have the opportunity to wipe the slate clean and start again with fresh hope. But we can't move forward without reflecting on the past lest we repeat yesterday's mistakes. One of the major happenings of 2015 was no doubt the campaign for free education by university students. What started as a student protest against increases in fees snowballed into a countrywide movement of tertiary students united behind one cause. The students got the attention they wanted from government and, critically, their demands were met. The lesson we all learnt, if we had forgotten it, is that the power to effect social change lies in our hands.

There could not be a reflection on 2015 without referring to Eskom and the load shedding woes it brought on us. Early in the year it was reported that over 34 percent of the utility's capacity was either broken down or unavailable for planned maintenance, thus resulting in daily power interruptions to prevent a complete blackout. Then came the appointment of Brian Molefe, first on acting basis, as the CEO of Eskom. His brief: minimize the debilitating load shedding effect on South Africa.

There has been a massive improvement in the supply of electricity since Molefe took over at Eskom. There are two obvious lessons from the Eskom saga. The first one is that without regular maintenance of electricity plants and adequate investment in electricity supply capacity, no modern economy can function. It ought to be basic but in our country even the most basic must constantly be pointed out. Secondly, if you are going to insist on "cadre deployment", at least give South Africa your best cadres.

The lessons learnt at Eskom are particularly instructive for other state owned entities, particularly the likes of South African Airways which has been spectacularly mismanaged. It took the intervention of Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene and his stern warning to the SAA board about financial misconduct to stop its board from what looks like a self-destructive path, both for the organization and for themselves as individuals. The warning about financial misconduct has a bearing on the board of directors, both jointly and severally and it is hoped that it will cause the SAA board to seriously ponder the consequences of its decisions. For now, big ups to Nene.

Economically, 2015 was not the greatest and this was confirmed by the downgrade the country received last Friday. From stable to negative, the outlook reflects lower GDP growth due to a number of factors such electricity shortages, escalating labour disputes, weak business confidence and other external factors such as weak external demand and low commodity prices.

There is nothing much we can do about the external factors but those within our control we should fix. We are addressing the electricity shortages and all stakeholders - government, business, citizens and labour - must rally behind Molefe and his team in turning around Eskom. If we don't, we would only be hurting ourselves. We must find a way of resolving our labour disputes quickly and without the protracted and violent strikes we have seen of late. To the extent that weak business confidence is driven by the things we do or don't do and the things we say, we can do better on this front. One can only hope that the propensity to inflict economic pain on ourselves will diminish in 2016.

Amidst all the challenges we have faced in 2015, let us not forget what a beautiful country we have. Our natural heritage (and that includes our wildlife, ecosystem, fauna and flora, beaches and mountains) is second to none. It is this heritage that is our "new gold" and from which we can build a prosperous tourism industry - provided, again, we don't inflict economic pain on ourselves by coming up with visa laws that will kill the golden goose.

What we saw with the stringent immigration laws introduced by government this year and the effect it had on tourism was very unfortunate. The fallout between the Ministers of Tourism and Home Affairs (as a result of these laws and how they were affecting tourism) was not just embarrassing but raised questions about how laws are processed in this country. Aren't there committees of technocrats and ministers where laws are tabled and their impact on the country and other departments assessed? The hint we got from the visa laws debacle is that the centre may not be holding and the policy machinery of government isn't well oiled.

South Africans we are a winning nation we have face many challenges in the past and win. We must all unite and a build a better country for our children and future generations to come. We have come a long way to give up now, let’s face 2016 with courage and hope and we can do better.