SURVIVING ZUMA
CLAIRE BISSEKER: Now South Africa has to pull off a second miracle
Former president Jacob Zuma pushed SA to the brink. In surviving and ultimately unseating him, SA has seized its second miracle. The democratic transition was its first. SA knows from the Nelson Mandela years how much the country can progress under good leadership. Zuma taught it just how fast progress can be reversed under bad leadership. But does President Cyril Ramaphosa have what it takes to unify the nation and repair the trust between the state and society like Mandela did, while delivering faster growth and job creation with the efficiency of Thabo Mbeki? He will have to do both. Economists agree real GDP will probably come in above 1% in 2018, as a fresh spurt of confidence boosts the rand, lowers inflation and rewards consumers. However, there are few who believe growth will get as high as 2% in the short term. The problem is that falling inflation and the potential for interest rate cuts have to be weighed against the sure prospect of an even higher tax burden after this w...
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