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‘Black elite enrichment system’ – FF+ leader slams BEE, accuses ANC of creating ‘new apartheid’
'That's a crime against humanity,' Pieter Groenewald told FF+ supporters on Saturday.
Freedom Front Plus (FF+) leader Pieter Groenewald at the launch of the party’s election campaign in Cape Town on 11 November 2023. Picture: Gallo Images/Die Burger/Theo Jeptha
Freedom Front Plus (FF+) leader, Pieter Groenewald has accused the African National Congress (ANC) of “creating a new apartheid of the politically connected” through policies like the broad-based black economic empowerment (B-BBEE) and affirmative action.
Groenewald presented his party’s plans to rebuild South Africa during its manifesto launch held at the Heartfelt Arena in Pretoria ahead of the 2024 elections.
‘ANC created a new apartheid’
Addressing FF+ supporters on Saturday, Groenewald said his party would scrap B-BBEE, affirmative action and all race-based quotas in all labour laws.
“Black economic empowerment is not the empowerment of the masses, it is the black elite enrichment system that’s all it is.
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“It is only the politically connected people who get the benefits of BEE. The ANC created a new apartheid in South Africa, an apartheid of those who are politically connected and we the ordinary citizens and taxpayers of South Africa.
“That’s a crime against humanity if you talk about apartheid, now this is the new apartheid,” FF+ leader said.
Groenewald stressed that the FF+ would “abandon and do away with affirmative action once and for all.”
President Cyril Ramaphosa previously defended B-BBEE, and preferential procurement and affirmative, saying the policies were important to address the challenges faced by South Africans, such as unemployment and inequality.
He highlighted that the “transformational” policies were introduced to address the “imbalances” created during the years of apartheid.
‘Vote ANC out’
Meanwhile, Groenewald called on South Africans to “take action” against the ANC and remove the governing party from power in the elections by voting for the opposition multi-party coalition.
“The thing first that we have to do is make a decision and that decision is that we take action. If we don’t take action, nobody will take action against the vandalism of the South Africa house and the culprits [are] of course the ANC government.
“We cannot sit still and they just continue, we must get rid of them to save our beautiful house,” the FF+ leader told the crowd.
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Groenewald further indicated that the FF+ would take “corrective action” to ensure that individuals responsible for the collapse of Eskom and corruption “pay the price and be prosecuted”.
“Not only the person in a high position, but the whole only network… the masterminds behind the corruption which even include politicians.
“The question is why were no drastic steps taken against those people,” he continued.
He added that the party was against the ANC-backed National Health Insurance (NHI) as it would “only exacerbate the crisis” within the health sector.
Multi-Party Charter coalition
FF+ is part of the Multi-Party Charter (MPC), which also consists of the Democratic Alliance (DA), ActionSA, the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) and the African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP), among other parties.
The pre-election coalition pact was signed in 2023.
Under the agreement, the political parties will not entertain working or co-governing with the ANC and the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF).
South Africa will head to the polls on 29 May after the election date was proclaimed by Ramaphosa last week.
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