For a few months, attributing bold ideological measures by the Department of Agriculture and its SOEs, which are out of step with the DA’s own policies and pre-election positions, to “muscle memory” worked for Minister Steenhuisen.
Farmers now see this as an excuse, similar to the ANC’s habit of blaming apartheid for the collapse of public services and entrenched corruption.
None of the stakeholders who, alongside the DA in 2022, criticised the Agricultural and Agro-processing Master Plan (AAMP) were invited to the AAMP Executive Oversight Meeting scheduled for 7 October in Stellenbosch.
TLU-SA was invited again after being expelled from the 2022 signing ceremony for seeking clarity on the term “transformation,” which appears 92 times in the Master Plan.
Six organisations that rejected the AAMP, namely SAAI, TLU-SA, WRSA, the National Employers’ Association of South Africa (NEASA), the Agricultural Employers’ Organisation, and consumer organisations, met three times with the Department and SOEs, as well as with AAMP signatories. They tabled nine formal objections. None has been addressed.
These organisations believe they have been deliberately excluded for criticising ANC policies rooted in socialist ideology, the false “stolen land” and “farm worker exploitation” narratives, and unattainable social-engineering goals such as the new employment equity measures, the expropriation at nil compensation bill, and new regulations on so-called fake meat and plant- or insect-based protein alternatives.
No progress has been made on earlier promises to include the wildlife ranching industry, or even to solicit its input, in the AAMP.
Consistent with the ANC’s ideological tradition, trade unions were closely involved in designing the AAMP and are expressly acknowledged in the text, yet none of the employers’ organisations were invited.
The objecting organisations maintain that positions which were fundamentally wrong under an ANC minister do not become acceptable simply because the current minister is from the DA. They also question the mandate of AAMP signatories who claim to represent farmers.
“This is an agricultural master plan without farmers,” said Dr Theo de Jager of SAAI and Bennie van Zyl of TLU-SA. “There is nothing in that plan to excite primary producers.”
Their principal objection is that profitability, sustainability, and value-chain efficiency are not meaningfully addressed in the AAMP text.
“Transformation can never be more important than profitability or sustainability. When transformation is elevated above sustainability, you get Eskom’s load-shedding era or the current state of public healthcare. When it trumps profitability, you end up where the SABC and Denel are today,” they added.
The DA supported this position in 2022 after the rushed and premature signing of the AAMP in Parliament. The undersigned expect Minister Steenhuisen to adhere to the DA’s pre-election policies.
AFRIKAANS
Vir ’n paar maande het dit nog gewerk om die Departement van Landbou en sy SOE’s se kragtige ideologiese stappe, wat nie strook met die DA se eie beleid en voorverkiesings-standpunte nie, as “spiergeheue” toe te skryf. Boere sien dit nou as ’n verskoning, soortgelyk aan die ANC se gewoonte om apartheid te blameer vir die ineenstorting van openbare dienste en verstokte korrupsie.
Geen van die belanghebbendes wat saam met die DA in 2022 die Landbou- en Agroverwerkingsmeesterplan (AAMP) gekritiseer het, is na die AAMP se Uitvoerende Oorsigvergadering op 7 Oktober in Stellenbosch uitgenooi nie.
TLU-SA is wel weer uitgenooi nadat hulle by die 2022-ondertekeningsgeleentheid uitgesit is omdat hulle verduideliking gevra het oor die term “transformasie”, wat 92 keer in die Meesterplan voorkom.
Ses organisasies wat die AAMP verwerp het, naamlik SAAI, TLU-SA, WRSA, die Nasionale Werkgewersvereniging van Suid-Afrika (NEASA), die Landbouwerkgewersorganisasie en verbruikersorganisasies, het drie keer met die Departement en SOE’s, asook met AAMP-ondertekenaars, vergader. Hulle het nege formele besware op tafel gesit. Nie een is aangespreek nie.
Hulle glo hulle is doelbewus uitgesluit omdat hulle ANC-beleid kritiseer wat gegrond is op sosialistiese ideologie, die vals “gesteelde grond”- en “plaasarbeider-uitbuiting”-narratiewe, en onbereikbare sosiale-ingenieursdoelwitte soos die nuwe maatreëls in die Wet op Gelyke Indiensneming, die wetsontwerp oor onteiening sonder vergoeding, en nuwe regulasies oor sogenaamde “nepvleis” en plant- of inseksgebaseerde proteïenalternatiewe.
Niks het van die beloftes gekom om die wildbedryf in te sluit, of ten minste hulle insette in die AAMP te soek nie.
Getrou aan die ANC se ideologie en tradisie is vakbonde intiem betrokke by die ontwerp van die AAMP en word hulle spesifiek in die teks erken, maar geen werkgewersorganisasies is uitgenooi nie.
Die beswaarorganisasies hou vol dat standpunte wat onder ’n ANC-minister fundamenteel verkeerd was, nie skielik aanvaarbaar raak omdat die huidige minister uit die DA kom nie. Hulle bevraagteken ook die mandaat van die AAMP-ondertekenaars wat beweer hulle verteenwoordig boere.
“Dit is ’n landbou-meesterplan sonder boere,” sê dr. Theo de Jager van SAAI en Bennie van Zyl van TLU-SA. “Daar is niks in daardie plan wat primêre produsente opgewonde maak nie.”
Hulle grootste beswaar is dat winsgewendheid, volhoubaarheid en doeltreffendheid in die waardekettings nie sinvol in die AAMP-teks aangespreek word nie.
“Transformasie kan nooit belangriker wees as winsgewendheid of volhoubaarheid nie. As transformasie bo volhoubaarheid verhef word, kry jy Eskom se beurtkrag-era of die huidige toestand van openbare gesondheidsorg. As dit bo winsgewendheid gestel word, eindig jy waar die SAUK en Denel vandag is,” voeg hulle by.
Die DA het hierdie standpunt in 2022 gesteun ná die gejaagde, voortydige ondertekening van die AAMP in die Parlement. Die ondergetekendes verwag dat minister Steenhuisen by die DA se voorverkiesingsbeleid sal hou.
