Hon Chairperson, Ted Turner, the well-known broadcasting entrepreneur, once said, and I quote: "My son is now an 'entrepreneur'. That's what you're called when you don't have a job."
We know that unemployment, joblessness, is the biggest challenge in our society. According to the broader definition of unemployment, 4 out of 10 people are not formally employed. But, hon Minister, in the South African context this joblessness, for many reasons, does not equate to entrepreneurship.
The entrepreneur is pivotal in achieving the very noble strategic objectives encapsulated in the vision and mission statement of your department. The entrepreneur in every winning and prospering country in the world is central to those successes. In coining the term the French economist, Jean-Baptiste Say, defined an "entrepreneur" as:
... one who undertakes an enterprise, especially a contractor, acting as intermediatory between capital and labour.
Entrepreneurs need an environment where they can flourish and do business. Government, as a key partner, must be instrumental in creating that environment.
However, we know that in the South African context the ANC government has not succeeded in creating an environment where specifically the entrepreneur in South Africa can survive and also prosper. Because of this, inter alia, South Africa is closer to being a welfare state than a developmental state. If one excludes Gauteng, the Western Cape and KwaZulu- Natal, South Africa is in effect a survivalist state, where 80% of the population is dependent on the state through grants and support for their daily needs and survival. [Interjections.]
The reason for this might, according to political commentator, Moeletsi Mbeki, be that:
In the 16 years of ANC rule, all the symptoms of a government out of its depth have grown worse.
. Life expectancy has declined from 65 years to 53;
. In 2007, SA became a net food importer;
. The elimination of agricultural subsidies by the government led to the loss of 600 000 farm workers' jobs;
. The ANC stopped controlling the borders, leading to a flood of poor people into SA.
The current uncertainty regarding fundamental constitutional principles is not conducive to investor confidence and an environment where entrepreneurs can flourish.
This has been fuelled by this weekend's decision to adopt the ANC Youth League's proposal on nationalisation and land expropriation as policy. [Interjections.] Despite the ANC's rejecting this, hon Minister, it seems that it is indeed a case of the tail wagging the dog. You will know, hon Minister, that this is not good news for South Africa. Today's Business Day quotes Business Leadership SA chairperson, Bobby Godsell, as saying it is "a bad idea".
Leaders like Julius Malema are bad news for entrepreneurs and South Africa. [Interjections.] It is detrimental to the future of this country that uneducated populists dictate the day-to-day agenda of the economic future of this country.
The time has come for the real leaders, hon Minister, including yourself, to raise their voices in regard to these urgent and potentially damning developments. We need entrepreneurs, not state intervention. We need entrepreneurs, not nationalisation. [Interjections.] We need a principled and sound leadership, not populist head-banging losers. [Interjections.]
The entrepreneur can and must be in the forefront of turning the tide in regard to the ills of unemployment and underdevelopment of our time. I thank you. [Applause.]