Rob Hersov’s comments on a ‘spineless’ Ramaphosa unpopular but necessary, say analysts
Businessman Rob Hersov described president Cyril Ramaphosa as a spineless disappointment.
Analysts have weighed in on comments that President Cyril Ramaphosa is “a spineless failure”, saying while billionaire Rob Hersov’s approach was undiplomatic, his message was necessary.
The entrepreneur was speaking at a conference this week and used the platform to call out Ramaphosa and his “cabinet of clowns”.
“Cyril Ramaphosa is a disgrace, he is a disappointment, he is an absolute embarrassment to this country and he should immediately resign.
“That man is a useless, spineless failure and it’s a bit of an embarrassment that the introduction of me, says that our family gave Cyril Ramaphosa the chance to step up. If I am to blame I apologise to all of South Africa, all of Africa and the world for such a disgrace being the president of our country,” Hersov said.
Professor Andre Duvenhage, a political analyst, said though Hersov’s statement was unverified it was, however, accurate and could be backed by evidence.
“The situation is extremely negative, I have been on the record for the past two years saying Ramaphosa is not performing the way he is supposed to perform.
“Hersov is blatantly politically incorrect and uses aggression because they [business community] cannot make progress, the problems in the country can be dealt with in a superior way by making small adjustments but they are not doing that,” Duvenhage said.
He said one example was the ailing power utility Eskom, whose woes could be resolved by opening the market to the private sector.
“Although this is not a popular message he is probably more accurate than inaccurate,” Duvenhage said.
Another analyst, Professor Sipho Seepe said Hersov was re-iterating the views of many captains of industry, Mcebisi Jonas, among others.
“There is no doubt that Ramaphosa presented himself as business friendly, and some people assumed that he understood something about business.
“Since Ramaphosa took over, he has been busy with internal battles within the ANC and as a result business has not benefited, they are not seeing dividends in terms of the sum of money that was thrown into his campaign,” Seepe said.
Calls for Ramaphosa to step down have mounted over the last few months in the wake of an ailing economy, high fuel and electricity prices and rolling power cuts.
Hersov also appealed to other businessmen, such as Patrice Motsepe to distance themselves from the ANC and withhold support before describing Ramaphosa’s cabinet as “clowns”. He also unveiled his version of a “cabinet of experts”.
The billionaire was reportedly set on approaching the Department of Public Enterprises with R2 billion to buy six regional airports owned by the government. But Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula shot down the idea last week when he said Airports Company SA (ACSA), a state-owned entity, which runs the country’s main airports, was not for sale.