By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) has called for dismantling the Broad-based Black Economic Empowerment Act (broad-based BEE), the Employment Equity Act and the Expropriation Act to open the economy to more meaningful growth.
Steenhuisen told a media briefing in Johannesburg on Monday.
Steenhuisen stressed that the DA is not opposed to redress or transformation, but believes these laws have become counterproductive.
The DA argues that Black Economic Empowerment in its current form has failed to deliver meaningful change for ordinary South Africans.
According to the party, BBBEE disproportionately benefits politically connected individuals and large corporations close to the ruling party, while excluding many small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and ordinary black South Africans.
Steenhuisen explained that the complex BBBEE compliance requirements impose heavy costs and administrative burdens on SMEs.
He says many small businesses cannot afford to meet the onerous criteria, such as extensive paperwork, ownership quotas, and preferential tender rules, effectively locking them out of opportunities.
“The perverse incentive of BBBEE has become that large companies cut out all SMEs to inflate their own BEE credentials,” Steenhuisen said.
He shared a story representing many South Africans’ struggles.
“Let me begin with a story of shattered dreams. Every day people approach me and members of the DA with stories of how they are cut out of the economy. For purposes of this story, I will name him Kabelo, from Vosloorus.
“Kabelo started a small logistics company with two trucks, ambition, and a dream. He believed hard work would be enough. But the system worked against him. No funding, because he lacked collateral. No tenders, because he had no political connections. No support, because BBBEE, in practice, has become a hurdle rather than a help.
“This is not just Kabelo’s story. It’s the story of millions of South Africans, locked out by a system that rewards the connected and punishes the rest.”
Steenhuisen said South Africa’s economy is in the ICU, with GDP per capita shrinking by 10% over the last 15 years.
He said the only way to transform the country is through fair, inclusive alternatives that lift poor South Africans out of poverty and onto the social mobility ladder.
“Today, we present real solutions, and we offer them free of charge to the ANC, so that the millions allocated for the national dialogue can instead be spent on services for the people of South Africa.
“The first order of business in our plan is to target three major roadblocks which are holding our economy back: BBBEE, Employment Equity and the Expropriation Act.
According to Steenhuisen, the ANC has become the architect of “anti-growth” through its policies, prioritising political patronage and self-enrichment over economic inclusion.
But last week ANC secretary general Fikile Mbalula said the party “would not be coerced” into reversing its “progressive transformation laws”, echoing a position stated by president Cyril Ramaphosa earlier this year.
The president told parliament that the coalition government’s commitment to broad-based BEE remained “steadfast” and aligned with the Constitution’s equality clause, which allows for measures to advance those disadvantaged by unfair discrimination.
“If the privileged class tried to fight back against economic redress, that would be unconstitutional,” he said.
To counter this, the DA proposes sweeping regulatory reforms to establish a business-friendly environment that enables entrepreneurship, investment, and job creation.
The party’s comprehensive economic plan includes:
- Removing job-killing policies and laws like BEE and Expropriation
- Ensuring affordable and reliable power by supporting competition
- Saving network industries like rail, road and ICT from collapse
- Performing a comprehensive spending review, including a payroll audit
- Saving local municipalities from collapse by ending cadre deployment
- Taking on crime, starting with state corruption and extortion networks
Launching the plan, Steenhuisen said that the DA would use its influence within the Government of National Unity (GNU) to push for action on the urgent reforms.
However, the party has frequently come up short when trying to convince the ANC and wider GNU to dance to a different tune.
While the DA is the second largest party in the GNU, it has repeatedly been steamrolled by the ANC, having little to no influence in swaying Ramaphosa from doggedly pursing ANC policies.