RANJENI MUNUSAMY: The trials and tribulations of Pravin Gordhan Lite
'How much political support does he enjoy now, and how long can he last in his job?
To animate his otherwise grim mini-budget on Wednesday, Malusi Gigaba wove in the motif of a harvest and the idea of reinvention, derived from the writings of the poet Ben Okri. Considering the figures he presented reflecting the calamitous state of the economy, the harvest theme was misplaced. There is nothing to yield - apart from the derivatives of ruinous political leadership. The line "You can't remake the world without remaking yourself" appeared to strike a note with Gigaba.Perhaps this was appropriate, considering his reinvention as "Pravin Gordhan Lite". "We must find the wisdom, the humility and the perspective to ask: 'How must we remake ourselves in order to build the South Africa we want?'" Gigaba said. Being at the helm of the National Treasury has forced him to confront truths about the consequences of unnecessary political instability, rampant corruption, the abuse of state-owned enterprises as vehicles for enrichment, and wasting taxpayers' money. Ahead of the mini-...
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