Solidarity is warning the South African government about the serious consequences of its ongoing campaign against Israel in which it is using taxpayers’ money to advance a case in the International Court of Justice.
According to reports, Pres. Ramaphosa can now sign a special Appropriations Bill into law after it has been approved by the National Council of Provinces. This Bill makes it possible to allocate more than R95 million to the court case in which South Africa is taking Israel on over the war in Gaza.
According to Theuns du Buisson, economic researcher at the Solidarity Research Institute (SRI), this costly campaign can still cost South Africans dearly if SA forfeits its participation in the agreement under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) of the US because of the court case against Israel.
“This R95 million spent on legal costs is just a drop in the ocean compared to what we stand to lose if South Africa were kicked out of AGOA, or even if our relations with Western countries were to deteriorate further.
“The ANC’s continued efforts to align South Africa with enemies of the US are damaging our reputation as an investment destination at a time when we can ill afford it,” Du Buisson said.
He emphasised how US interests will be prioritised when the administration changes in January when it will fall under the leadership of president-elect Donald Trump.
“When the US gets a new government, it is likely that there will be no more mercy for the ANC’s shenanigans. If Trump does indeed impose a general tariff on all imports to the USA from countries such China and Mexico, we cannot afford to be kicked out of AGOA.
“If AGOA exempts our exports from the general tariff, it will give us a major competitive advantage, and this is something South Africa simply cannot relinquish,” Du Buisson said.
In November Solidarity called on president-elect Trump to allow South Africa’s participation in AGOA to continue, as approximately 20% of South African households are directly dependent on exports to the US.
Approximately 30 000 of Solidarity’s members also work in industries that benefit from tariff-free exports to the US, as made possible by AGOA.
Du Buisson says that if ever the South African government should now tread ligthly with managing its relations.
“Yet, it is as if the ANC is making taxpayers pay more so that they can further impoverish themselves. Moreover, his case against Israel does not enjoy significant support. We simply cannot afford to stand by and watch how ordinary South Africans become impoverished for the sake of the ANC’s moral agenda.
“We should indeed seek rapprochement with the US and other countries that will put South Africa on the winning path economically, and we should abandon these ideological disputes immediately,” Du Buisson said.
