Comment: ‘It’s time for political leadership to help unlock Eastern Cape economy’

POLITICIANS ARE quick to point out that the Eastern Cape is the “poorest province” in the country. It is a refrain heard in speech after speech, particularly by local representatives, in the hope that someone from national government will listen – or care. Largely, the voices go unheard. With little chance of being voted out in the foreseeable future, the ANC seems to have placed the Eastern Cape at the bottom of the list of priorities. That, at least, is the view of many in business and politics in the province. How else does one explain reluctance by government-owned organisations like Transnet and Eskom to invest in the province? One of the burning issues is the port of East London. It serves a vast area – including the poverty stricken Transkei and Ciskei regions where unemployment runs at over 70%. A partnership between business and local government has pointed out that plans for forestry, furniture, agri-business, goat exports and more will run aground if the port of East London is not modernised. Transnet has, however, said the port is not a priority. Similarly with the rail link between East London and Gauteng. East London has the potential to be a major African vehicle hub – provided there is investment in the rail link. Again, it is not a Transnet priority. Nor is the rail link between Port Elizabeth and East London. Port Elizabeth is (slowly) getting the port of Ngqura some years after President Thabo Mbeki promised it would be operational. There the big issues are the airport runway, which is too short for international flights, and the stalling by Transnet on the relocation of an unsightly manganese ore dump on one of the city’s main beaches. The moving of the ore dump and neighbouring tank farm to Ngqura is central to plans for the revitalisation of the Port Elizabeth city centre. Viewed from a strictly business perspective, Transnet has a case. It will possibly get better returns on other investments. But, if one analyses the situation from the perspective of government – its only shareholder – the picture is very different. There the returns are enormous in terms of job creation, poverty alleviation and taxes. Government will certainly make a profit on the investments. Then there is the whole question of whether parastatal organisations should declare a profit at all in a “developmental state” as envisioned by the ANC at its mid-year policy conference. Speaking to the media after the conference, national executive committee member Joel Netshitenzhe is reported as saying that the ANC believed the state should have the capacity to intervene in the economy in the interests of national development, higher rates of growth and social inclusion. The Eastern Cape provides just such an opportunity – either intervene as was done earlier to force Transnet to build the port of Ngqura – or invite private enterprise to invest where government monopolies have shown they have no interest. There are precedents. Private cellphone companies provided telecommunications almost overnight to areas in the Transkei and Ciskei where Telkom had not reached. The provincial government has funded the resuscitation of the Border-Kei rail link. But the Eastern Cape needs to build on these successes and the political leadership has to stand up to national government and demand that the shackles of poverty be broken by investment in the logistical infrastructure of the province. Voter patience cannot last forever.