The financial crisis would not force labour to relax its demand for direct black ownership in banks to be lifted to 15 percent, Cosatu said yesterday. Such a shift would postpone transformation in the sector, it added.
Banks and the unions remain far from agreement on the proportion of direct black ownership, almost six months after missing the August 31 deadline for the end of the transitional period for compliance with broad-based black economic empowerment (BEE).
Jan Mahlangu, the retirement funds representative at Cosatu, accused those who resisted increased black ownership of wanting the country's wealth to remain in the hands of the few.
"If we back off this important demand, it means the burden of this global financial crisis would be borne by South Africa's poor alone," said Mahlangu.
"South Africans must see the crisis is a result of greed."
Vukani Mde, the spokesperson for the department of trade and industry (dti), said it had offered to broker a compromise, but neither party was willing to make concessions.
Mahlangu hoped the matter would be resolved by the end of next month.
Cas Coovadia, the chief executive of Basa, said the treasury had been helpful.
"They can only pressurise the dti to do what it needs to do … The ball is in the dti's court."
But Kokkie Kooyman, the global fund manager at Sanlam Investment Management, said the treasury was "procrastinating because they have come to realise that strong shareholders are needed to increase the black direct ownership to 15 percent".
Thoraya Pandy, the treasury spokesperson, said the treasury was not backing away from the problem.
"We are strongly committed to ensuring financial stability, particularly at a time when many overseas banks are facing great challenges in this respect."
full story from Business Report here
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