# Social Category > South African Politics Forum >  Surprise! JZ appoints new Finance Minister

## Dave A

In a surprise move that has caught everyone off guard, Jacob Zuma has removed Nhlanhla Nene as finance minister.

Unsurprisingly, the Rand tanked on the news.

I'm not buying the excuse that has been trotted out - Finance is a critical portfolio and you don't mess with it lightly. 
Anyone got a clue what the real thinking behind the move was?

----------


## Dave A

Looking around - Nene's shock removal pure political play - economists.

Pretty much where my thinking was going.

I'm afraid this President is going to go down in history as an absolute disaster for SA.

#JZmustFall

----------


## sakkie

I think Nene was to "tight fisted" to JZ's liking. He was replaced by a puppet that will not oppose the Nuclear Power deal.

I would hate to see what the fuel price is going to do in January, despite oil being at its lowest price in years.

----------


## IanF

Is there anyone in the ANC who will stand up to Zuma and have him recalled like they did to Mbeki? 
We are on the road to becoming another African mess.
#Zumamustfall

----------


## Desert Man

The downhill momentum is rapidly accelerating - somehow some drastic action is needed soon to stop this power monger who's currently destroying SA - we need a real leader to stand up and stop the rot - not sure where he/she will come from but doubt from within the ranks of the ANC.

----------


## Electrode

My immediate concern would be the new investments towards stabilizing our Country's energy supply. There are rumours and conjecture that hint towards a more aggressive maintenance timetable to stabilize our existing infrastructure. This include streamlining expenses and perhaps a heavier hand was needed to help oversee the financial process. I personally believe some promises were made by government and conditions were laid out by investors to protect their investment. Or it could be something else entirely.

----------


## IanF

One rumour I heard was he was p**sed off about the new plane being stopped. We will have to wait and see what the new guy does to find out the reasons.

----------


## Electrode

> One rumour I heard was he was p**sed off about the new plane being stopped. We will have to wait and see what the new guy does to find out the reasons.


There are numerous rumours at this point and very little information. The lack of transparency caused many to speculate. Corruption being one major concern and mismanagement being the other. South Africa cannot afford more mistakes, this is abundantly clear. As a country we are heading head first towards a financial disaster.

I am however doubtful that we will know the real situation.

----------


## Marq

My guess (Ok - its more than a guess its a serious hope)........he is battling a palace coup.

----------


## cherryman

So RW Johnson said we had two years what six months ago? He was wrong, we had six months. Or maybe we have another six months. Maybe. But I have my doubts. 

PS I'm new here so hi everybody.

----------


## Electrode

Opinion: Zuma has committed treason




> In the latest episode of "Zuma Screws the Country", Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene was removed from his position to be redeployed to some other role to be revealed at a later date. This is an act of willful abuse towards a country and an economy in desperate need of fiscal leadership  or just about any leadership really. The Daily Maverick has described this as an act of sabotage. Id go further and call it an act of treason (if were working with the definition that says treason is a violation of the allegiance that a person owes his country).
> 
> Nene was a pretty big cog that was still functioning in a very broken wheel. Here are some of the good things Nene has done:





> Its clear why Zuma doesnt like the guy. He was doing his best to cut the direct line of rands to Zuma's pockets. Realistically, Nene didnt stand a chance. And now, as my friend Rico Schacherl pointed out, hell most probably become the ambassador to Chad.
> 
> In his place,we have David van Rooyen, a man who certainly hasnt held any senior financial governmental positions and whom nobodys really heard of. Except COPE deputy president Mbhazima Shilowa. He knows Van Rooyen. This is what he had to say about him on Twitter last night:


Is this a blatant opinion? Or, is this a blatant truth?

----------


## Dave A

From that same story - 




> Roll on 2019, but good luck finding a successor who will be able to turn around the soggy mess of a country they are left with.


Frankly, I don't think the country can afford to wait that long.

#ZumaMustFallNow




> PS I'm new here so hi everybody.


Welcome to TFSA, cherryman  :Wave:

----------


## Blurock

So did you not believe him when he told you that the ANC (and Zoom) comes first? So screw the Beloved Country! As long as Zuma gets what he wants.

(and note that the spooks will be looking at this)

#ZumaMustFallNow     :Batman:

----------


## Electrode

I personally don't like politics, and if we are honest it is not benefiting anyone anymore. South Africa was, and can still be a strong independent country. Unfortunately reckless spending and corruption, along with reckless borrowing of funds will burden us and many future generations for years to come.     

Unfortunately it is our children that will be tasked to set things right. 

The duty of youth is to challenge corruption.
Kurt Cobain

----------


## Dave A

Came across this meme today while wandering through #ZumaMustFall on Twitter

----------


## Brett Nortje

Have you guys heard about the health sector? they say no health care needs medical aid, and, all hospitals need to accept anyone.

Quite bizarre.

----------


## adrianh

> Have you guys heard about the health sector? they say no health care needs medical aid, and, all hospitals need to accept anyone.
> 
> Quite bizarre.


Why do you say that this is bizarre?

----------


## Blurock

> I personally don't like politics, and if we are honest it is not benefiting anyone anymore. South Africa was, and can still be a strong independent country. Unfortunately reckless spending and corruption, along with reckless borrowing of funds will burden us and many future generations for years to come.     
> 
> Unfortunately it is our children that will be tasked to set things right. 
> 
> The duty of youth is to challenge corruption.
> Kurt Cobain


Politics is threatening our businesses. If business is adversely affected, it puts jobs at risk. If jobs are at risk, it threatens our society. If society is threatened, it threatens our very existence.

#ZumaMustFallNow

----------


## Electrode

> Politics is threatening our businesses. If business is adversely affected, it puts jobs at risk. If jobs are at risk, it threatens our society. If society is threatened, it threatens our very existence.
> 
> #ZumaMustFallNow


It is my opinion that businesses always had the ability to stop the gravy train. Backing the right political party is a start. Pushing that political party to approach both the national and international legal system can help the cause. Giving individuals the option not to pay SARS legally would be the next logical step. Within these steps pressure could have been placed on our existing government to handle corruption more effectively and perhaps clean house.

It is the responsibility of the opposing party to do the legal research and create a mandate that businesses and individuals can implement. Stopping SARS payments legally can be a decisive step forward. Empowering businesses and individual is the first step towards a working solution. 

Legal financial protest can be effective. It will take strong leadership, conviction and intimate knowledge about our legal system.

----------


## Blurock

The reality is that there are very few business leaders who have the balls to challenge government, be it is South Africa,  Ghana, the UK or anywhere in the world. Business is indirectly dependant on government and most business leaders are too scared to challenge the status quo as they may lose sales in the process. Our government is so corrupt and racist that they will actually sacrifice jobs in order to implement their strategies. I call on all business leaders to stand up for the truth and to fight corruption in which ever form. 

#ZumaMustFallNow

----------


## wynn

Had to smile at this by Miles in Friday's Dispatch

----------


## Justloadit

Zuma broke his silence.
The statement said that it was all planned.

You bet it has been all planned, he is now trying to mislead everyone by stating 




> Jacob Zuma, the president explained Nene's axing as a move to send him to Shanghai as the country's nomination for the head of the African Regional Centre of the BRICS bank.

----------


## flaker

Now we have an "old" new finance minister in Pravin Gordhan. After PW's "Rubicon" the rand never recovered to  levels prior to that speech in Durban. 

After this newest shuffle i am now wondering if the Rand will recover to levels  prior to Zumas's Rubicon.

----------


## IanF

There was heavy behind the scenes goings on, if this is true Cyril also played Russian roulette.



> On Saturday, talk that Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa would resign was gaining ground. Ramaphosa had not been seen since Nene’s firing and did not attend Van Rooyen’s swearing-in ceremony. Both Ramaphosa and Nene had worked on the SAA turnaround together and speculation was that Nene had dug in his heels on the Airbus deal after having consulted Ramaphosa. This raised questions about the state of the relationship between Zuma and Ramaphosa.
> 
> If Ramaphosa had walked, the market was destined for a crash as he was brought in as Zuma’s deputy specifically to calm investors and big business.


The link to Daily Maverick article

----------


## Dave A

I definitely got a sense of deja vu this morning when I saw the news  :Stick Out Tongue: 

Quite clearly our President miscalculated. Will he survive now that the rashness of his decision to sack Nene and his failed bluster to cover it up has been exposed?

#ZumaMustStillFall

----------


## sterne.law@gmail.com



----------


## Blurock

> I definitely got a sense of deja vu this morning when I saw the news 
> 
> Quite clearly our President miscalculated. Will he survive now that the rashness of his decision to sack Nene and his failed bluster to cover it up has been exposed?
> 
> #ZumaMustStillFall


I almost recovered some trust in the government, but then I realised that these are the same idiots who defended the buffoon on the Nkandla issue, the SAA, the SABC, the nuclear deal, the arms deal etc etc etc...

#ZumaMustFallHard

----------


## Xplosiv



----------


## IanF

What surprised me with the new/old minster is he seemed to be adamant about not taking nonsense from the SOEs or government departments. 

Will this just be bluster or for real?

----------


## wynn

Miles and the Dispatch are at it again!

----------


## sterne.law@gmail.com

Business Strategy 101

Take a person who cannot run 1 municipality and put him in charge of 269

Yes, that should work.

----------


## Dave A

> What surprised me with the new/old minster is he seemed to be adamant about not taking nonsense from the SOEs or government departments. 
> 
> Will this just be bluster or for real?


Pravin had no choice but to come out hard in order to turn the markets.

His track record suggests he probably means it too, but at the end of the day there's still the problem of No. 1. 

Zuma's iron grip on the steering wheel has been weakened, and I can't see JZ just limping through the balance of his term. His manoeuvrings are likely to continue - perhaps even accelerate.

----------


## flaker

Received this by mail recently. Enjoy......

----------


## Electrode

Barclays considers scaling back in Africa




> London/Johannesburg: Barclays is considering whether to break with almost 100 years of history by selling some or all of its African banking operations as part of a review led by Jes Staley, its new chief executive.





> Staley has raised questions about the strategic fit of the UK-based banks large African business with the rest of the group, but no decision has been taken yet, according to people familiar with the matter. Barclays declined to comment.





> The Barclays review comes after investor confidence in South Africa was shaken by* President Jacob Zumas decision to change his finance minister* three times in less than a week at a time when the economy is under severe stress.


As a ABSA bank client, I am deeply concerned and am considering moving both my funds and investments if they don't give clarity soon. But this does not boast well.

----------


## IanF

History repeats itself I remember Barclays selling out before that was the birth of FNB. What's next sanctions?

----------


## Electrode

> History repeats itself I remember Barclays selling out before that was the birth of FNB. What's next sanctions?


I am rather hesitant to speculate at this point. It is as if the local economy became a house of cards. The slightest instability can cause a major upset. The rand is sliding into obscurity and it seems we will follow Zimbabwe's choice to adopt the American dollar soon. Or perhaps the British pound?

----------


## Gaynor

The Bart Simpson song "Deep Deep Trouble" comes to mind.

----------


## msmoorad



----------


## flaker



----------


## Electrode

South Africans deserve better leaders. Investors are no longer buying the apartheid excuse and our government can  no longer hide their corruption. Billions go missing and the tax payer can no longer pickup the bill. The thousands that don't contribute to SARS is also responsible for slow growth. I fully sympathize why they refuse to contribute to SARS, but we cannot get out of this hole, if we don't have the finances to do so.   

What we need is a functional government body. What we have, defy description. Maybe in the new year things will change but I have my doubts

----------

