Dear President,
The year 2025 lies on the horizon for every person, waiting for us, also for our country. We as Christians know that it will require each of us to exercise our cultural mandate, as derived from the Word of God, namely to inhabit and to preserve, according to the ordinances of God. This requires that the outcomes of our daily decision-making and way of life should bear the fruit to show that we live a life of gratitude to the glory of God Triune. According to statistics, we are approximately 85% Christians in South Africa. We thus rightly ask the question: is this truly still the measure against which our lives are tested? As individuals, but also as institutions and government, we must know that this is ultimately the most consequential aspect of accountability that must be answered.
The persistence in supporting a Marxist model where the state wants to position itself as the institution with sole authority over people’s well-being must be clearly contrasted with the Biblical guideline of private property rights and free trade, which can create wealth where each of us, as stewards, exercises our cultural mandate. Your ideology, with its focus on labour as the most urgent aspect for the future, is currently being proven wrong in practice at a very rapid pace. Mechanisation and technology are already replacing labour as a production factor at a high rate.
The creation of wealth is a creative process driven by entrepreneurs willing to do business. Their success is of utmost importance for the state to generate income through taxes. Mr Ramaphosa, in all honesty—the wealth that has been created over time is running out—whether due to a lack of economic growth or faulty utilisation and corruption.
The apparent goal you pursue, to establish a classless society where everyone is equal and the so-called economic injustice is abolished, is unrealistic. The outcome will indeed be that everyone (except your elite in the inner circles) will languish in poverty. Conversely, we as Christians know that our primary task on Earth is to glorify God and live in relationship with Him. This involves obedience to His will and preparation for eternal life. It also means that we clearly learn from the Word that not everyone is equal and has received the same talents. According to the Word, your view of equality is indeed an error.
The Marxist worldview focuses on materialism, social revolution, and a human-centred solution to the world’s problems. The Biblical worldview is founded on God’s sovereignty, redemption through Christ, and an eternal purpose for man. Marxism places man at the centre, while the Biblical framework places God at the centre.
As a government in a democracy, you have two primary responsibilities. Firstly, you must ensure the safety of the country’s residents, and secondly, you must create a climate in which the private sector will want to do business. For more than thirty years, you have failed miserably in both these responsibilities. With approximately 80 murders per day, corruption running rampant and being addressed very softly, and legislation that continuously creates uncertainty for investors, there can certainly be no boast of a safe and favourable environment in South Africa.
If the responsibility to ensure the safety of residents had been fulfilled at all, the public would see the SAPS as their friend. With a few individuals in the SAPS, this is indeed the case, and for that, there is great gratitude. However, crime syndicates and criminals have positioned themselves in the SAPS, and corruption within those ranks runs rampant. This causes any law enforcement officer in that uniform to be approached with uncertainty. The SAPS must be cleansed, properly trained, and thoroughly equipped to adequately address the threats. They must re-establish a pure ethos of service delivery in the interest of the country’s people before the SAPS can and will play a meaningful role. It is your responsibility as head of state to be accountable for this.
Globally, the countries pursuing a system where private property rights and a free market are pursued with minimal government interference have consistently proven to provide the best opportunity for wealth creation. In contrast, a Marxist-driven centralised socialist model on a trajectory towards communism has, worldwide, only caused poverty and intense sorrow for the population. Consequently, the elite who impose it on the people unjustly enrich themselves.
South Africa is in a dire situation. We experience daily the consequences of mismanagement, corruption, and poor policy formulation. As a representative of thousands of commercial farmers across the country, TLU SA addresses this letter to you as a serious call to action and accountability.
The problems our communities struggle with are well known:
Policy uncertainty and incorrect policy: This is the starting point and foundation of what is wrong in South Africa. Economic indicators clearly show that our country has not performed satisfactorily regarding economic growth under the ANC’s policy direction over recent years. The greatest discourse is possibly cadre deployment, accompanied by corruption. This causes expertise to be replaced by loyal supporters who do not possess the responsibility and expertise required to successfully fulfil the necessary obligations. In every area of our society, many examples can be cited, such as the outcomes of our learners’ Mathematical and Science abilities (or perhaps inability), their lack of comprehension in reading, and also the policy of expropriation without compensation (EWC), which discourages investments and undermines property ownership rights. The latter is the most urgent aspect to create wealth for those who accept the responsibility required to engage in the economy.
Corruption: This must be highlighted as one of the most significant cancers undermining the country’s future. The scale of self-enrichment through tender fraud and purchases from the state coffers has escalated disproportionately. For example, while vehicle tyres in the private sector can be purchased for approximately R4,000, there are instances where SAPS stations procure the same tyres for up to R18,000. This corruption is rampant across all levels. Officials in positions of authority must ensure that everything under their control functions transparently and correctly. The question arises whether they are not part of this destructive cancer.
Energy crisis: The unpredictable and ongoing load shedding paralyses economic growth and agricultural production. While we may not have experienced load shedding recently, we are frequently subjected to load reduction, which has the same consequences. The bureaucratic obstacles preventing private initiatives from contributing effectively to resolving this issue must be removed.
Crime: Farm attacks and general insecurity not only threaten the lives of farmers and farmworkers but also the country’s food security.
Economic uncertainty: Certain aspects are crucial for achieving economic growth. The market force test evaluates any business and the country. If a business fails this test, it will go bankrupt. Similarly, international credit agencies evaluate a country. If it fails the test, the country will be downgraded to junk status—something we have already shamefully achieved.
Infrastructure: Taxpayers contribute significantly to the state, which should maintain and improve infrastructure. However, all sectors of the economy experience poor infrastructure, which hampers economic processes.
Economic growth is crucial to address the rising socio-economic challenges and other issues meaningfully. Social grants are not the solution to unemployment. This practice will soon lead to unrest and further increases in crime. Every action, stance, and legislation of a responsible government must first be tested against one aspect: what will the impact on economic growth be?
Distortion of History: Over time, revolutionary groups have perpetuated lies about history. Black people, like white people, are second-generation residents in South Africa. After 1994, with the establishment of the current order, the agreement was that everyone would supposedly be equal citizens of the country and treated as such. False accusations against white people are continually made, and you, as President, should act against those who maliciously threaten the agreed-upon existing order.
These issues no longer require discussion or committees; they demand decisive action, but the correct action.
Constructive Proposals
Look inward and be honest about what has not been achieved over the past 30 years. The policies you are pursuing are doomed to fail. The legacy you are currently creating is one of great sadness and poverty. The Zimbabwe model serves as a stark example. There, the Mugabe regime violated every international political rule. Here, you are doing exactly the same with one difference: it is being done through legislation, and you boast about a so-called democratic process that facilitates it.
Realise that your two primary responsibilities as a government must be fulfilled, namely: ensuring safety and creating a climate conducive to private sector economic involvement. This requires abandoning your failing policies of BEE and everything associated with them. Pursue competent appointments and stop turning everything into a racial exercise.
Take effective action against the corruption that has become endemic in our country. Ensure that the guilty parties face proper consequences and establish a fundamentally sound state system that serves the people of the country.
The likelihood that you will pay any attention to this letter is very small. The reality is that South Africa’s citizens already demonstrated during the last election that they are beginning to think and realise that our country can no longer afford the ANC’s policy direction. The thinking of the ANC, its allies, and institutions pursuing this illogical course has indeed become too costly for South Africa’s future, especially for the future of its youth.
Agriculture, arguably the most relevant player for stability, continues to play its role despite a government that has been absent in supporting agriculture for the past 30 years. On the contrary, over the past 30 years, as a foreign ambassador mentioned to us, the government has proven itself to be agriculture’s greatest enemy—something you should be ashamed of.
Every person works on a legacy. History judges everyone harshly—including you. There is not much time left for you to create a better future for the youth of our country. As things stand now, future generations will rather skip over the history you are currently creating because it will be remembered as a time when a sinking ideology was pursued indecisively, to the detriment of the country’s citizens.
For more than 127 years, TLU SA has chosen to build and create for the future. It is embedded in our character and DNA. When you choose to pursue the right policy direction in the best interest of our country’s future, you will find us there. However, if the choice remains to lead our country to the ashes of failure, you should know that members of TLU SA will once again rebuild constructively. Our footprint in the development of South Africa runs much deeper than most current politicians who have no context for how to build a future.
We believe South Africa can unlock its potential with targeted and practical changes.
The way forward
Mr President, the time for empty promises is over. We do not ask for miracles; we ask for appropriate leadership and accountable governance. TLU SA and the farmers of South Africa remain committed to building our country, but we cannot do it alone.
It must be made explicitly clear to investors and entrepreneurs, without playing with words, whether the principle of private property rights will be unequivocally respected. If you persist in pursuing the failing model of Marxist socialism through statements and legislation, economic growth will remain an unattainable dream in the future. This inevitably has negative consequences for the future of our country.
We invite you to engage with us and other responsible stakeholders to discuss and implement realistic solutions. South Africa’s future depends on our collective efforts.
We pray for wisdom and courage on your part.
Yours faithfully,
Henry Geldenhuys
President of TLU SA