LETTER: Merit, not cadres, create jobs

This is rich! President Cyril Ramaphosa argued in Boksburg on Sunday that he had failed to bring the promised New Dawn because of state capture. Yet over the years he ignored warnings from within his own party about the capture of state institutions.

Ramaphosa headed the deployment committee of the ANC. Cadres were appointed on loyalty to the party — not skills and experience. Ethics did not figure. Cadres appointed for political reasons found themselves in an ideal position to enrich themselves by doing the bidding of the Guptas. 

If the president wants a growing economy, he must scrap race targets and use merit as the criterion for appointment. This may upset a few thousand cadres, but will create millions of jobs.

Willem Cronje 
Cape Town