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Minister Stella must go!

Last week the Portfolio of Small Business Development Committee had its 12th straight meeting without the attendance of the Minister of Small Business Development, Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams.

On 6 August 2021, the Minister was moved to the portfolio of Small Business Development after a stint in the portfolio of Communications and Telecommunications, where she infamously flouted lockdown regulations by attending a lunch with former Deputy Minister Mduduzi Manana.

Of course, instead of firing her from his cabinet, President Ramaphosa gave her a wrap over the knuckles by suspending her for two months and then later shuffling her to a new portfolio.

Since this new appointment, she has attended a staggering 2 out of 13 Small Business Development Portfolio Committee meetings. Clearly the minister takes her responsibility towards the committee about as seriously as her adherence to the lockdown regulations.

It is however not only her unwillingness to attend meetings, but also her eagerness to close down small business that has hallmarked her time as a Minister of Small Business Development, earning her the more appropriate title of Minister of Small Business Discouragement.

In January, the Department of Small Business Development proudly tweeted the following quote from Minister Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams’ speech at their roadshow in Mpumalanga: “As government, we have a responsibility to enforce regulatory compliance in the SMME sector and close businesses that are trading illegally.”

Yet, just two weeks later at SONA, the President himself said: “This year, we are undertaking far-reaching measures to unleash the potential of small businesses, micro businesses, and informal businesses. These are the businesses that create the most jobs and provide the most opportunities for poor people to earn a living.”

It seems the Minister and the President are not singing from the same Small Business Development hymnbook.

It is no wonder then that whilst Minister Stella is trying to close small business, the President has duplicated her responsibilities by appointing Mr. Sipho Nkosi to help small business, by heading up a red tape reduction unit inside the presidency, something that should been championed and performed inside Minister Stella’s own department of Small Business Development.

Clearly it is not only the DA that questions the ability of the Minister to perform her mandate, but the President also himself is duplicating her responsibilities inside his office.

This sort of ministerial behavior (or lack of behavior) and measures by the President is precisely why the DA has instituted a motion of no confidence in President Ramaphosa’s cabinet.

Minister Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams must go, and for the following reasons:

Showed disregard for the law by flouting lockdown regulations
While lockdown regulations prohibited South Africans from leaving their homes for any purpose other than obtaining or rendering essential services or obtaining essential goods, Minister Ndabeni made bragged on social media about attending a luncheon at the home of former Deputy Minister Mduduzi Manana.

Regularly fails to attend meetings of Parliamentary portfolio committees
Since being appointed as Minister for Small Business Development, the Minister only attended 2 out of 13 portfolio committee meetings. Parliament is tasked with oversight over the Executive, and the Minister legally has to account to Parliament - however she clearly takes this important constitutional responsibility as serious as she did lockdown regulations.

Failure to develop Small Business, with a focus on rather closing down small business
Minister Ndabeni-Abrahams should be more aptly named the Minister of Small Business Discouragement. While the President lauded the importance of small businesses at SONA this year, announcing that government intends to unleash its job and opportunity creation potential, Minister Ndabeni-Abrahams was boasting about how many small businesses she intends to shut down due to regulatory non-compliance.

Failure to reduce red tape, leading to the duplication of her responsibilities by the Presidency
In what should clearly be seen as a demonstration of the President's lack of faith in Minister Ndabeni-Abrahams' abilities, he has set up a Red Tape Reduction Unit within the Presidency, appointing Sipho Nkosi to do the job that Minister Ndabeni-Abrahams' department was supposed to do - assisting small businesses to flourish by reducing bureaucracy and red tape. If the President trusts his Minister so little that he duplicates her responsibilities in his own office, why should she continue to be paid a handsome executive salary with all its accompanying benefits?

In her previous portfolio, Minister Ndabeni-Abrahams showed complete disregard for the independence of institutions
Once again demonstrating her utter lack of respect for constitutional governance, Minister Ndabeni Abrahams' brief stint as Minister of Communications saw her overseeing large-scale political interference at the SABC, where she amongst other things attempted to dictate the financial restructuring process at the state broadcaster under the guise of saving jobs. She is also said to have abused her powers by attempting to hire and fire board members at the South African Post Office and reportedly interfering in their tender processes.

Issued by DA Shadow Minister of Small Business Development, Jan de Villiers MP