Steinberg: Sexwale Will Buy Power

Farrel — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 17:30:00 -0500

Jonny Steinberg (author of the most excellent SA prison gang treatise ‘The Number’) has a rather scathing editorial in today’s Business Day comparing presidential hopeful Tokyo Sexwale to Italian Prime Minister (and media mogul) Silvio Berlusconi.

Steinberg all but accuses Sexwale of buying his current support and claims Sexwale will have to keep on paying his supporters should he come to power.

There is a polite silence about this matter, a discreet aversion of the eyes from Sexwale’s way of conducting politics. And yet if there was ever a spade that asked to be called by its name it is this one. A man has just thrown his hat into the race for this country’s presidency. He has also just given various members of parliament, cabinet ministers, the spouses of cabinet ministers, at least one judge and one public commentator — and who knows who else, it isn’t all out yet — sizeable nest eggs. Could the character of a Sexwale presidency ever be written out more clearly?

I do think Steinberg is being a bit harsh. While it’s true both Berlusconi and Sexwale are wealthy, Sexwale at least does have considerable political experience being a past premier of Gauteng.

That being said I tend to not like politics where the size of the campaigners chequebook is an indicator of whether they will win or not, but it’s better than the hush hush positioning and manoeuvring we would otherwise have with the ANC.

Politics.za: Steinberg: Sexwale Will Buy Power

Steinberg: Sexwale Will Buy Power