Green Shoots: I would not be president for all the tea in China
At the time of writing, the radio stations in Joburg are abuzz with commentary about the meeting of President Ramaphosa and Donald Trump in Washington. Ordinary folk have very strong feelings about this event and have happily spent their airtime waiting for their 30 seconds of fame on the radio. There are views that say Ramaphosa capitulated to the bully boy tactics of the orange demagogue, smiling obsequiously at the torrent of fake news abuse. There are those who say that our president was the paragon of diplomacy in managing a raging nutjob with a loose grasp of reality, calmly refusing to take the bait so inelegantly on offer.
Some of Ramaphosa's team members were not the usual allies he would take into battle. There were golfers and billionaires, and a cabinet minister from the former official opposition – all with Afrikaans names. Their contributions in the White House meeting have made people either new fanboys of rich old white men, or bitter critics of how thirty years of democracy has done little to change who holds the power. One person called Johann Rupert '16V', the nickname of legendary Bafana soccer star Doctor Khumalo, for his intervention. Another lamented how top golfer Ernie Els was caught in a time warp when he appreciated US support to South Africa in the war in Angola – this was when PW Botha was president of apartheid. Ernie might have been serving as foot soldier then – he's still enjoying the privileges now.
I deliberately didn't watch as I have an aversion to cringeworthy moments – movies, politicians, bad wedding speeches. I know for sure that Trump makes me cringe, and I had no stomach for his theatrics in such settings. It's also difficult to listen to people who exercise disproportionate power in society talk about humanity as if they really care – Trump about farmers, the South Africans quite nonchalantly about our country's crime problem. They reiterated that crime kills a lot of people, not just Afrikaners, as an argument against the genocide claims against South Africa. Our best argument was to parade how callous we've become about violence. But then, the purpose of the visit was about debunking the false narratives and safeguarding trade arrangements.
In our current economic model, we are dependent on trade for growth and, theoretically, the jobs that result from that growth. Cyril is a billionaire and leads a country with a capitalist economy. He believes in the model, and so we cannot be surprised that he would do the most to limit antagonising the powerful US in favour of good trade deals.
I don't believe there is a right way to deal with Trump. I've heard it said by people who know these things that South Africa must trade with more countries to avoid dependence, certainly on the USA. BRICS is often raised as the alternative, and we seem to be getting cosier with the east. According to our tax man, in March this year we exported R172 billion, 10% of it to China (1st place) and 5.7% to the US (3rd ). We imported R147 billion, again with China (19%) topping the charts and the US getting 7.2% in third place. A sustainable shift no doubt will take time, but I think Trump's bull in a China shop antics will hasten it. It is the leader's responsibility to massage egos and navigate unhinged megalomaniacs so that the country can do what it has to in order to thrive (here I am taking an uncritical stance on the current economic system). And that is why I wouldn't be a president for all the tea in China.
Perhaps we should spend our data and airtime focusing on the threat that is Trump's presidency rather than looking for consensus on the performance of the South African delegation. I came across this pithy statement posted on the socials by an old comrade about Trump's Oval office: 'It doesn't need data. It doesn't need logic. It only needs spectacle, certainty, and the confidence of inherited dominance. This is white supremacy in executive form — charismatic, chaotic, and unapologetically irrational.'
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