Finance Minister Tito Mboweni’s suggestion that he would be willing to go to the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) for economic relief has triggered a sharp response from the African National Congress (ANC) alliance, News24 reports.
It said ANC secretary-general Ace Magashule, SACP deputy general-secretary Solly Mapaila and Cosatu general-secretary Bheki Ntshalintshali had written to President Cyril Ramaphosa rejecting Mboweni’s line of thinking.
According to the news site, the three said in the letter: ‘We reject this proposal. We instead reaffirm the need to safeguard South Africa’s democratic national sovereignty, the fundamental right to self-determination, our independence which is non-negotiable, even in the midst of the crisis.’
The letter came as positive cases in South Africa rose to 1 686, with 12 deaths – and as economic pressure mounts with the impact of the lockdown placing enormous strain on the economy, worsened by the recent downgrades by ratings agencies Moody’s and Fitch.
Yesterday, the Reserve Bank said the economy might contract by between 2% and 4% this year as a result of the pandemic.
The alliance grouping were reacting to Mboweni’s comments last month in which he indicated that he would not hesitate to go to the World Bank or the IMF for help if the country needed it.
He was reported as saying: ‘There is no time for ideology. If not IMF, then give me the money. I cannot eat ideology.’
News24 reported: ‘In their counter proposals to Mboweni, the ANC-led alliance suggests that government turn to the South African Reserve Bank to play a more developmental role, collaborating with financial institutions as well as National Treasury. “Government should evaluate and explore all sources of domestic finance including industrial retirement funds as well as policy instruments to tap into sources in a sustainable and mutually beneficial manner to turn round South Africa in the interest of all the people especially working class and poor.”’
Indications of South African businesses beginning to feel the sharp impact of the lockdown included Woolworths announcing that staff would forego up to 30% of their fees and salaries over the next three month as foot traffic and general sales volumes plunged, and KFC’s owner Yum! Brands telling landlords in South Africa that the US firm would not be paying rent while outlets were closed for the lockdown.
In other virus-related news
- British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was admitted to intensive care last evening, as his condition had worsened during the afternoon. The BBC reported that while this was a ‘precaution in case he needs ventilation to get through this illness … something important has changed, and he has felt it necessary to ask his foreign secretary to deputise for him where needs be’. Another report said: ‘Intensive care is where doctors look after the sickest patients – so Boris Johnson’s admission to ICU is the clearest indication of how ill the prime minister is.’;
- The daily death toll in Spain dropped for a fourth consecutive day, the government announcing there were 637 deaths compared to 674 on Sunday, the lowest number since 24 March;
- However, in Italy, where the daily death toll had fallen in recent days, fatalities rose again to 636, a jump of more than 100 from the previous day;
- French Economy and Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire warned that the country was facing its worst post-war economic downturn since the end of World War Two – surpassing the -2.2% slump that followed the 2009 global financial crisis; and
- In the United States, a tiger in the Bronx zoo, suffering from a dry cough, tested positive for Covid-19. Scientists said there was no risk of cats, big or small, transmitting the virus back to humans.