Business gets tough on govt

Johannesburg - The abolition of President's Councils, the harsh outburst by Trevor Manuel earlier this year against the business sector, and the impotence and divisiveness of Business Unity South Africa (Busa) have encouraged the country's major companies to be much more outspoken in future.

On Tuesday last week, Business Leadership South Africa (BLSA), the think tank of the country's 60 biggest companies, announced that it would make itself heard, especially on matters of energy, health and competition.

The silence from organised business has been intensively debated since Manuel's outburst in June at this year's World Economic Forum Africa Summit in Cape Town. Manuel denounced business leaders as cowards because of their silence on important socio-economic issues that closely affect the country.

On Friday, a source in the organised business sector said that it had become clear to the sector and its members that their reticence had been noted and that they were failing to serve the interests of members or the country with their cautious approach.

In future, after every BLSA management board meeting, a news conference will be held in which the board's position on issues affecting the economy and the business sector will be openly expressed.

It has recently also become clear that President Jacob Zuma's administration has views that differ radically from those of former President Thabo Mbeki regarding liaison with civil organisations and the organised business sector.

Zuma has allowed the four presidential working groups maintained by Mbeki to die a quiet death. The working groups related to the broad business sector, black business, agriculture and the unions.

But these working groups were never really effective. With the exception of one or two business leaders like Johann Rupert, very little had been articulated, according to the source.

For a long time it has been evident that Busa is not the proper vehicle to mobilise the voice of the business sector, because of the egg-dancing and political sensitivity within the organisation.

Busa CEO, Jerry Vilakazi, in an interview with Sake24 this week, acknowledged some of the problems at Busa including the omission of professional organisations such as the Black Lawyers' Association and the Black Conveyancers' Association from Busa's ranks.

However, the International Labour Organisation's guidelines on who should be members of employer organisations make it clear that professional organisations should be excluded.

Professional organisations introduce conflicts of interest that are irreconcilable with the concerns of employer organisations.

It is also problematic that Jimmy Manyi is both a Busa member and the Director-General of Labour. This means that he has access to all Busa negotiation documents, including those on labour legislation, while he is essentially government's chief negotiator on labour law, among other things.

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