No freedom without economic participation, says Alex’s Raletjena

Alexandra’s Mush Raletjena, president of the SA Job Seekers Movement, believes citizens of this country cannot consider themselves free as long they do not actively participate in the economic life of the country.

Raletjena issued a statement to Alex News under the theme that ‘Africa will not be free if South Africans are not economically free’ to voice his and the movement’s concerns around the celebrations of Freedom Day which were marked countrywide last week.
“We cannot for starters call ourselves free for as long as we do not take active participation in the economic life of this country and the government needs to take stock and action to begin to make it conducive for its citizens to play a key role in the economy,” Raletjena said.

He said for the past 28 years, South Africans have been yearning for meaningful participation in the economic life of the country but that has not been realised. “The big question we all need to ask ourselves is that do we consider ourselves free in this country 28 years later even though we still play a very minimal role in the economy of this country?”
Although he acknowledges that Covid-19 has exacerbated the suffering of South Africans as many of them lost their job as a result of closures of some industries, Raletjena bemoaned the ever-rising unemployment figures and warned that ‘this was a ticking time bomb waiting to explode into anarchy’.

“It is easy in South Africa for people that have come into the country through the back door to find employment and be exploited than a South African seeking employment with all the relevant papers and qualifications.
“Most employers give an excuse that South Africans are lazy and hence they do not get employment but I want to tell them that South Africans are lazy to be exploited and abused by such unscrupulous employers,” Raletjena said.

Spokesperson of the movement Mthokozisi Khambule said a number of illegal immigrants have invaded this country to take up employment for a salary way below the National Minimum Wage Act of 2019. “It worries us to note that our leaders seem not to see anything wrong with the influx of illegal immigrants.
“We call upon our esteemed Parliament to ensure South Africans are considered first in the queue for all the employment opportunities in this country, whether private or public and also ensure they end modern-day slavery salaries being taken by our fellow African brothers and sisters,” Khumbule said.