BBBEE wrong

[JohnMasumba]

Am actually finding that my White friends get upset at the mention of BBBEE, and my more melanin-enriched friends prefer not to talk about it at all.

[Blurock]

Am actually finding that my White friends get upset at the mention of BBBEE, and my more melanin-enriched friends prefer not to talk about it at all.

My experience of BBBEE: In 2012 we started a factory to manufacture products that were mainly imported and sold locally by international companies who dominated the market.
The company was formed with the purpose of creating local jobs and manufacturing skills. Our aim was also to enter the export market to generate revenue to SA. in 2018 we were nominated in 3 categories as exporter of the year and awarded winner in one.
51% of the shares were allocated to our MD, a black South African who had work experience in the USA. The DTI was elated and came to visit us on several occasions, but not one cent of support or orders came from government. We had one of the best products on the market and built a brand known for quality and innovation. We eventually ran out of money because our BBBEE partner was not politically connected and could not raise any funds or orders.

The corporate pirates who then came in as equity investors eventually hijacked our business by not paying creditors, salaries & wages. They eventually appointed two BBBEE partners who came in as investors but no-one had any manufacturing skills or the ability to run such a technical business. After a period of declining sales because of poor quality and mismanagement, the BBBEE partnership was disolved and 70 empoyess were retrenched. Today this business exist in name only. The share price of the holding company fell from R18 to R1.10. In a matter of onlly 5 years they managed to destroy a very successful business with innovative products and decimated a workforce who were adequately trained in a number of skills.

I am all for equal opportunity and uplifting the poor, but none of the poor have benefitted from BBBEE. We have a duty to create not only jobs, but skills to save this country. BBBEE is nothing but corporate greed enriching the politically connected who does not care to steal the bread from their workers and their families. BBBEE = corruption!