Help Us . . .
It's been a while . . . The Super 14 got hectic, and when it died down, I took advantage of the down time to get away for a week, having worked non-stop Monday to Friday for four months, I think I deserved the break...
With the current economic melt-down, a global situation it has to be said and not just confined to South Africa, it was interesting to read that Mozambique's government has scrapped a tax on diesel imports to help industries affected by soaring fuel prices.
We are about to get a reprieve, a few cents will be lifted off the South African fuel price next week, but you can bet your bottom dollar that when it goes up, we'll look at 50c or more, not the 10 or 12c that get reduced.
And here our government could take a leaf out of the book of our neighbours who obviously see the bigger picture.
Of course, removing the levy does reduce the tax income, but it is an instant reward
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to industry, retaining jobs and injecting money directly into the economy, unlike general taxes which only have a small percentage that actually service the country's needs, the rest go on administration and the million rand salaries of political appointees who serve only their master, not the people who put them there.
I really didn't want to turn this into a griping session - we South Africans love to whinge (although many would say we have enough reason to) - but surely the government could do more to help our economy.
The interest rate for one thing, and I've spoken about this in a previous column, should not hit consumers in the pocket so badly.
How about two rates, one to buy your primary home and possibly your car, the second, almost a wealthtax - a modern day Robin Hood sin tax - if you are rich and have worked hard, we'll tax you to death - linked to the current interest rate where you buy your second car, or limited to luxury cars of a SUV or petrol-guzzling nature, and luxury items like boats and caravans.
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