Atterbury co-founder, Francois van Niekerk was recently awarded business leader of the year 2018 by Die Burger, Netwerk24 and Kaapstad Sakekamer. Read his inspiring keynote speech below:
Die Sakesektor en die kernuitdaging van ons tyd
The Key Challenge for SA Business
Ons eregas vanaand, die Michelin-sjef, Jan, is van Frankryk en baie van ons hier se wortels gaan terug na daardie mooi stamland. Die Westerse wêreld se laaste groot revolusie was maar net 230 jaar gelede daar. Die woord ‘revolusie’ kom deesdae ook hier by ons na vore. Kan ons enigiets uit die Franse voorbeeld leer?
At the time the French Royalty owned mostly everything, blindly hung onto their opulent privileges, had a selfish indifference toward the poor masses and lost all under the guillotine. Would it have happened if they had a better understanding of the basics? A willingness to share, if they were less self-serving?
Our dominant concern in South Africa currently is about an unmistakable revolutionary undercurrent. The Gini coefficient is at breaking point. Do we even hear the poor when they say “is it OK for you to own all and for me to be hungry? I accept we’re not equal; but am I not your brother and does God not expect of you to be my keeper?” Is it at all sustainable that less than 200 rich individuals globally own more than the bottom 3,5 billion people on the planet? Or that 70% of our population face hunger daily?
Dit gaan oor die herskikking van mag. Magsug wat dikwels onbeskryflike ellende meebring. Het ek die antwoord? Kan die Regering ooit tot werklike insig gebring word? Nee, ons moet maar ons denkstroom saam ontwikkel. En weer politieke ruggraat vind. Die Sakesektor is die hedendaagse besitklas en ons is nou die populistiese teiken. Die meerderheid Suid Afrikaners het erg troostelose vooruitsigte en raak toenemend ontnugter met demokrasie wat vir hulle absoluut geen tasbare voordeel bring nie. En dit is dikwels die grondoorsaak van revolusionêre wendings.
Maar enige revolusie kan óf destruktief óf konstruktief wees. Wanbestuurde populisme gaan ons land oor die afgrond dryf tensy ons self die inisiatief neem en ‘n positiewe revolusionêre verstelling maak. Sakeleiers verstaan die soms bitter klein marge tussen sukses en mislukking. Die verskil is durf, waagmoed en deurdringingsvermoë – en ons het mos al drie!
Mense is toenemend desperaat na nege en meer jare van disfunksionele regering. Die nuwe President bring gedeeltelik ‘n nuwe wind van hoop, maar ons moet die rigting beïnvloed – soos die Agri organisasies aan die doen is. Dit vra ‘n radikale verandering van denke en leierskap wat Suid Afrika eerste stel.
We need to move much further out of box and re-discover our legendary pioneering strengths. But let us first understand the basics. The Haves and the Have-nots respectively hold economic and political power. Therefore, both sides have something very substantial to trade with. Also, both sides should be brought to the understanding that their common enemies are poverty and bad governance.
A possible approach is for owners to say to the poor: “We recognise your needs. Let’s use your voting power and I will share of what I have – both assets and expertise – if you will help to ensure proper governance over both of us. If we do it sensibly, both of us will benefit sufficiently.” Required is a controlled redressing of the overall imbalance with both the Gini poverty gap and bad governance. But strong leadership and pressure from Civil Society will be required to bring self-centred politicians to any agreement.
We can escape the darkness. But only through the difficult task of uncovering “positive politics”. The SA Haves are world champions of disproportionate ownership. Can we now find it within ourselves to move against history and share some of our wealth? Are we at last ready to heed the warning of Dr Anton Rupert: “he who wants to retain all will lose all”?
‘n Nasionale vennootskap tussen die regering, die geloofsgemeenskap en die sakesektor kan werk. Hoekom? Wel, 80% van ons mense is gelowig. Tweedens deel die meerderheid Suid Afrikaners steeds ‘n werklike of latente goedgesindheid teenoor mekaar en wil hê ons land moet slaag. Derdens kan die owerhede se onderprestasie bloot nie so voortgaan nie en vierdens is die druk aan die opbou en iets gaan gebeur. Die vraag is eenvoudig of ons ‘n passiewe toeskouer of aktiewe rolspeler wil wees? Die klimaat is daar en iemand het eens gesê ‘Jy moet nooit ‘n goeie revolusionêre klimaat mors nie”!
My voorstel is tans net ‘n filosofiese denkraamwerk, byv vorm ‘n verenigde Burgerlike Alliansie (BA). Druk dan die Regering na ‘n unieke vorm van nasionale vennootskap; onderhandel byv sowat vyf ‘regeer verantwoordelikhede’ soos die ekonomiese groeikoers en Suid Afrika se posisie op internasionale indekse vir Korrupsie, Misdaad, Opvoeding, Handelsklimaat, ens. Die Regering se volgehoue prestasie – teen ooreengekome teikens – bepaal dan ‘n ooreengekome oordrag van sake-eienaarskap na ‘n sentrale ontwikkelingsfonds vir alle armes. Sodanige ‘kapitaalbydrae’ word dan op ‘n 50/50 besluitnemingsbasis deur die BA en die Regering vir opheffing aangewend.
Dit maak mos bloot sin om ‘n mindere deel van jou aandeelhouding of ‘grondgebied’ af te staan in ruil vir behoorlike regeringsprestasie. Ek praat van een of drie of selfs 10% van jou aandeelhouding (nie 70% soos wat ons by Mergon gedoen het nie).
Quite clearly “normal politics” will get us nowhere. But courage, creative thinking and the can-do SA attitude may make the seemingly impossible narrowly possible. Creative breakthroughs are seldom if ever obvious beforehand. It may even take the DA joining the better half of the ANC. It all depends whether we can find it within us to be courageous enough to secure our future by drawing a firm line between the constructive and destructive groups within our society.
The concept is akin to ‘Social Capitalism’ or retaining the workable core advantages of both capitalism’s ownership motive and socialism’s focus on communal welfare. In reaction to the Government’s increased performance, Business will share of their rightful ownership on an agreed scale in response to how well the Government partner enhances the general climate. It makes perfect sense to forego some of your ownership in return for an agreed higher standard of governance. And the intention is in the region of one- or five- or ten percent of ownership; not 70% as we have done at Mergon.
Easy? No, but consider the severe difficulty in finding a workable system to the exciting prospect of our country exhibiting the success of governing in partnership. And us leading the world with a governance model of Social Capitalism; or sharing wealth to assist fairness and stability.
There is another more powerful perspective from my business experience. Some may see this as even more revolutionary, but it is not – i.e. to intentionally focus on the real power of the One that 80% of us believe in. Sharing my business life with God is what brought me here. I know what He can do and involving Him will take our country to unimaginable heights and the ultimate high ground.
It is obviously a revolutionary approach in need of much refinement. But even partial success will bring directional benefit.
The proposal is as radical as the populist alternatives but at least it is not self-serving and without destructive intent. Sustainable national transformation will not be achieved without communal hard work and a constructive premise, but communal hardship will be avoided. We can – and our country is surely worth it. So, are we fixedly staring at ourselves in the self-made mirror of disaster or can we make it a window of opportunity?
Sal die politici ooit tot so iets instem? Beslis nie uit hul eie nie en nog minder deur kiesersdruk. Die enigste hoop is nuutgevonde leierskap uit die Burgerlike Samelewing en natuurlik ook by die Regering. Maar die druk moet van ons af kom. Ons sal moet ophou praat, ons verlede besweer en begin saamwerk.
Die filosoof Henry Nouwen: “You don’t think your way into a new kind of living. You live your way into a new kind of thinking.” Daarby ‘n ander siening van die gevierde wysheer: “Who will I be when I stand before You with empty hands? Please help me to gradually open my hands; and to discover that I am not what I own; but what You want to give me”.
My gebed is vir ‘n ware nuwe Suid Afrika!
Article in Die Burger 14 September 2018. Click on image to read PDF
