To BEE or not to BEE

The last few months have been interesting, I've been observing how BEE has been changing Southern Africa for the worse. I still ask: why is it that people, who are not qualified, get a job purely because they are Black/Indian/Coloured.

A large company has several IT posts available. None of them can be filled because there are no black woman (one of the requirements) or black men (the other requirement) that have the qualification. So what does the company do? Do they leave the posts unfilled? Or do they hire people (black of course) and train them? Or will they have the courage to employ people who can do the job? What's even more amazing is the 'Tech Charter' (http://ictcharter.org.za/)

The one good thing about BEE is that it has allowed minority groups the advantage of starting their own business. Clearly these businesses are small and BEE does not apply to them. The losers? The majority – the new generation cannot blame the 'legacy of apartheid' on there own failings of not finding employment when there is a large market out there with many gaps for anyone who is prepared to roll up there sleeves and have a go at it.

We all need to create our own wealth – something the majority must still learn as they still believe that the best way to becoming wealthy is by taking what does not belong to them. What they also need to learn is that people don't become wealthy with a job. No-one has every managed to do that.