One love, one heart, Let's get together and feel all rightHear the children crying (One love), Hear the children crying (One heart) Sayin', "Give thanks and praise to the Lord and I will feel all right." Sayin', "Let's get together and feel all right."Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa (Bob Marley who would have been 60 on the 06/02/05)

Whadup gangstas,
Nope its not Thursday or Friday, its just me getting the mail out sort of on time this week. 2 new additions to this email Miss Nadia (a lovely young lady whose birthday I forgot last week, my bad sista) and my brada from anada mada Damsie (Anthony Odama), a better gentleman, u will never. Guys welcome, and feel free to speak your mind we all know that I do, and today will be no different ;-). Should you want to read some of the previous articles or wish to respond to any of the articles please visit www.mondaymail.blogspot.com.

Empowerment, Affirmative Action, Employment Equity, Affirmative Procurement, Ownership, Equity, Management, funding, funding funding. All words that are floating around the business world louder and louder these days. Last week, a colleague and I were fortunate enough to attend a BEE symposium in the Western Cape, yes you read right, a BEE symposium in the WESTERN CAPE, and might I add a well-attended one at that. There were some good speakers.

How often do we hear this statement used to define Empowerment…”Blacks sense of entitlement and White fear”? There was this Economist who came to speak about BEE and the Economy and she (a non-BEE she) said that statement is in fact incorrect it should read “White entitlement and Black fear”. White entitlement in terms of wanting things to remain as they have been in the past and blacks fearing that things just wont ever change. It made me think…

Now in my mind I think BEE is a great thing for the nation, I hear some people thinking you would... My answer…I do… Oh happy days… lets look at this scenario…capable young man, did my time at university at university, got a job at a reputable institution to complete my articles… but now tell me something, here is Yaw Peprah, black guy, born in Ghana, raised in Umtata, parents other than being ultimate nice guys, aren’t CEO’s or chairmans of anything other than maybe the Ghanaian community in the Transkei, didn’t attend private school. Then there is Michael Loubscher, white guy, same qualification as Yaw P, educated at Bishops, Michaelhouse, Hilton, St. Andrews (some top private schools in SA) maybe his folks were sat on this, that and the next board. They both go for an interview at Nedbank, ABSA, Standard Bank, FNB. In all honesty, who do you think they would hire? But that is irrelevant right now, I want to give you some of my thoughts after listening to some of these people talk and the questions that stemmed from their respective presentations.

There are a few bleak people out there that are very miffed about the thought of ‘giving’ away parts of a business that they have spent a while building, possibly even generations. My question to those people is were it not for the laws of the past that gave you the acres and acres of profitable farmland, on which some tribe was probably settled I might add, would your business be where it is now? That factory you built, had it not been the practices that restricted black education to only a level where they can be your labourer, would your organization be where it is right now? But you know that’s not relevant either. I really hate dwelling on the past, but unfortunately we are the product of our past practices.

Its all about a shift in mindset, girlz and boyz, its all about a shift in mindset. 2 weeks ago 3 of us go to the office of a prominent Cape business man. 2 white guys and me. We are there to speak to the man about raising some finance. The whole meeting whilst we are talking finance, the conversation is between the 3 of them, I took no exception, new guy, first time at the client…then all of a sudden the client turns his chair and his attention is diverted to me… “I heard a story last week one of my colleagues’ son in law, cruising in a black merc with his wife, was hijacked in their complex…” what?! Does he think I know where the car is? Is he looking to me to help this friends son in law finance a new one? Somehow I doubt it was the latter…A shift in mindset that’s all it takes!

People start off most of their criticism and their venting by saying government says that…if I am not mistaken, BEE is not a law, it’s a mere guideline that government is going to use in terms of its business, and at the moment you are free to choose to empower or not to empower your organization. Government doesn’t need to be empowered, as a matter of fact, neither do you. Government is not waving a fat stick telling organizations, empower or else, at the moment its merely saying this is how we’d like you to do it. I have sat in a few meetings and all I hear are businesses angrily stating how this whole empowerment thing is such a balls up! I must just give my business to blackie. And that grinds me. If all the funds in the world available for BEE transactions belonged to me, I would not fund this business. I would not fund it because, firstly that business’ empowerment may well not be true empowerment because the seller’s mind is not right. S/he is entering into the transaction because they feel they have to. They feel that they are being unfairly treated. To that person I say, go home to your 3 acre plot in Bishopscourt, in your R750k car…drive past your worker on the way to the taxi rank in the hope of making it to his little shack that could well have been burnt down…and then come back and discuss whats fair with me.

Firstly a successful BEE transaction will require a positive mind change for all parties involved. The seller should enter into the transaction with good intentions, so too the buyer. The seller should be a willing seller, they should be excited at the fact that they are able to assist a nation of people less fortunate than them. The buyers should enter into this transaction with the aim of adding value, but not only value cos they are black or cos they know people in this, that and the next place. They should be willing to put in an effort to make a success of the business because the spin off effects will definitely be felt throughout the economy. Sure there are many capable black people that can not afford to put up any capital for these transactions, but in that same breath you cruise into the meeting in an X5, carrying a Nokia 9100i communicator, dressed in an Armani suit…spare me the I don’t have any security bull. If you believe strongly in the deal, scratch if u must to find something to put up as security. It reduces the strain on the seller, and helps build the relationship with the seller.

Another thing that irks me is when people always try and put the blame of lack of funding solely at the feet of government. Now I am by no means a politician, actually very far from it, but we wont go there. In my mind this present day government, has done so much good for the nation, other than the threat of a civil war (which I believe may well have been won by the government), what was stopping them for saying, hmm I want that land, and that land and that business and this business…absolutely nothing, I think. Would the international community have frowned upon them, perhaps, but if u look at the history I am sure they could have gained mammoth support from other African Nations, Russia and a few more countries. But instead they chose a diplomatic way. They made a suggestion. A suggestion that was all-inclusive, a suggestion that still left the majority of the country’s economic wealth in the hands of the minority. Yet the minority is up in arms. Small businesses are crying foul because they can’t fund their BEE deals. Vendor finance them! How much will it really cost you not to have a BEE partner? How much will it cost you to ‘give’ some of your organization away…u are a smart person you do the math.

Houses, roads, water, sewerage systems, electricity, interest rates cut or not, Zimbabwe, DRC, Ivory Coast, HIV/Aids, the next president, unemployment, corruption, crime. All issues we want the government to sort out, now you tell me where on earth do you expect the big T to find time to deal with your R3million deal? With respect, doing a R3 million deal takes as much, if not more time than doing a R50mil deal, so u tell me where do u get the most bang for your buck if you are a financier?

We are all in a position to educate those around us. Government doesn’t have to do everything, we have the power to make a change, all u have to do is believe you are doing the right thing, sincerely want to make a change in this nation, u complain about the crime etc. being so high in this country, what are you doing to make it right? U r complaining about govt not making money available to do your BEE deal, are u paying all the taxes you owe? I could go on. But right now we are all in a position to make a change, we can educate those around us!

BEE didn’t just start now, many moons ago it started. How do you think Afrikaners got to the positions of power that they currently hold? No one frowned then. It was so much worse then, because it was a win lose situation what government is proposing today is a win win situation and yet people frown. I’ll say it again, drive from Cape Town international airport towards the city, look to your right, u tell me whether this empowerment thing is a good thing or not. U might be thinking well what is empowerment going to do for those families living there, well u never know they could be an employee of XYZ limited that is doing an empowerment deal that includes a staff trust. Let me ask you what difference will it make to them?

Birthdays
22nd Victoria and Lindsay
25th Abena
26th Themba, Louise, me

May u all be blessed on the days of your birth and the year till your next anniversary.

Maximum respect and keep it tidy!
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