BizNews Radio

That is the belief of Mzukisi Makatse, the attorney who first blew the whistle on corruption at the National Lotteries Commission - and lost his job, his car, his house, the hope of marrying the mother of his three children…In this interview with BizNews, he describes how his life imploded after he alerted his employer to an irregular R6 million lottery grant. And he speaks of pride with being vindicated by the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) probe that eventually uncovered R1,4 billion in corrupt dealings, and now has the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) going after the looters. Makastse - who has been awarded the international Blueprint Africa Whistleblowing Prize - says: “We cannot have our own country degenerating into an abyss when we are there and we decide to keep quiet. We cannot keep quiet. Corruption has become a cancer. It has to be rooted out.”

Independent stock exchange Equity Express, which recently expanded to include bonds and debt notes, has rebranded to I-Ex - The Integrated Exchange - to better reflect its offerings. This interview with founder Anthony Wilmot explores how the independent stock markets have impacted the JSE, formerly a monopoly, and looks at how the specialist offerings provide a route to the capital markets for SA’s entrepreneurial class.

Vice-Admiral Mondo Lubese, the head of South Africa’s Navy, recently threatened to sever ties with the arms manufacturer due to its failure to repair the Navy’s vessels. In an interview with Biznews, DA Shadow Minister of Defense, Kobus Marais, called it a bold statement by the Navy chief and expressed his doubts about Armscor being the right entity to run the dockyard that repairs naval vessels. He stated that the significant failures of Armscor and Denel have contributed to the current dilapidated state of the South African Navy, which has no serviceable submarines and only one operational frigate. This means that South Africa can’t defend its 3000 km coastline or honour its international treaties and obligations. Marais pointed out that there is also no capability in the Air Force for the protection of our coastline, which leaves South Africa vulnerable with outdated technology and unable to defend the country or deter any of its enemies. He emphasised that urgent restructuring and repositioning are needed at Armscor and Denel, and the highly capable private defence industry should take over. Marais warned that if the situation continues, the Navy may end up being a “water wing”, which would be an embarrassment and a sad day for South Africa.

Activist and author Chuck Stephens of the Desmond Tutu Centre for Leadership sleeps with a loaded gun as he endures years of vengeful persecution since he blew the whistle on corruption in 2011. In this interview with BizNews, he describes what happened after he reported “nefarious activity” in the Community Work Programme in Mpumalanga. “I'm a target. And I think of Babita Deokaran (The Department of Health whistleblower who was murdered). And I see what happened to (Alexei) Navalny (the opposition politician murdered) in Russia…Eventually, if people hate you enough and they've got power, they're going to sequester you and they're going to take you out. And that's what I'm facing now.”

CubeSpace, a company that originated from Stellenbosch, has recently secured R47 million in venture capital funding to broaden its operations globally. The South Africa University Technology Fund is among its investors. Mike-Alec Kearney, the founder and CEO of CubeSpace, told Biznews in an interview that their products are endorsed by NASA and have been used to build the control system for a lunar rover developed by the UAE Space Agency. Despite the crash of the Japanese lander carrying the moon buggy, South African manufactured parts have made it to the moon. Kearney highlighted that the space industry has transformed over the past 20 years, enabling the private and commercial sectors to thrive. Under the guidance of Professor Herman Steyn from Stellenbosch University, CubeSpace began developing control systems for small satellites, known as CubeSats. The company has since grown into a market leader in control experience and satellites, supplying a range of products to NASA, the European Space Agency, and the UAE’s space agency. CubeSpace is now looking towards further expansion.

Those who have studied it say conclusions reached in National Treasury’s 600+ page forensic investigation into Eskom are deeply worrying. Including the immediate threat of an even more desperate electricity shortage should a couple of already dysfunctional water treatment plants tip over the edge. The IRR’s chief executive John Endres shares his insights, highlighting how government’s inaction on risks identified in the report threatens to expand the R2trn loss which SA’s economy has already suffered. He spoke to BizNews editor Alec Hogg.

ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba says on-the-ground feedback reflects a very different Election’24 picture to one propagated by incumbents and the media. He points to ActionSA’s double digit vote shares in rural by-elections complementing its widely acknowledged strong position in urban areas, especially Soweto where he reckons the party dominates. Mashaba predicts South Africans will punish the chaotic ANC/EFF coalitions; says the DA will lose its Western Cape majority and is making a strategic error shunning the Patriotic Alliance and its leader Gayton McKenzie.

President Cyril Ramaphosa has no “long game” to deal with corruption. The only game is the African National Congress (ANC) held together by corruption - and run like a syndicate.  So says Democratic Alliance’s Shadow Minister of Small Business Development, Jan de Villiers. He speaks to BizNews after the president temporarily suspended - instead of sacked - the Deputy Minister of Small Business Development, and former Transport Minister, Dipuo Peters, after a probe into her misconduct by the Joint Committee on Ethics and Members Interests. He says suspending her for just one month “sends a loud and clear message that he is not serious about doing anything about State Capture or people like her who clearly are very much involved in the abuse of State resources”. De Villiers says it was within Ramaphosa’s power to turn the country around, “but that would have meant not running the ANC like a syndicate”.

Investors who’ve bought a “local is lekker” marketing message by SA asset managers will grind their teeth a little harder after another huge underperformance by the JSE in February. In our weekly review of the past month, Corion’s David Bacher unpacks the key numbers and shares why international stock markets continue to significantly outperform the JSE. The continued slump in resource shares is only part of the story. He spoke to BizNews editor Alec Hogg.

Hero crime fighter Ian Cameron is entering politics. In this interview with BizNews, he speaks about his motivation for joining the Democratic Alliance (DA) and heading to Parliament. He also gives the assurance that he will remain involved in the civil rights work he has done for the past 15 years - and that he will continue to monitor the cases he has worked on. “I think we're at a very dangerous place in South Africa where the police, the police's wheels, for all practical purposes, have come off, in my opinion, and we need to find any way and means possible to try and influence that.” Cameron believes a mixture of civil action and more direct policy influencing through a parliamentary process can make a broader spectrum impact.