Saki Macozoma

Sakumzi Justice Macozoma (Saki) (born 1957) is a South African former political prisoner who is now one of South Africa's most prominent businessman and a leader in civil society. Quotes We have abandoned non-racialism. I don’t know what happened or where, but we have abandoned non-racialism. Once we dichotomise this issue by race in such terms, nobody is going to be willing to support this dream of a true, non-racial South Africa. The white South Africans who worked at Transnet also had to have a reason to come back to work the next day. If we say to someone, ‘I’m sorry, but I’m going to move you because I need transformation,’ they must understand it. You must convince them. If I had not had the privilege of being a beneficiary of ANC policies, I wouldn’t be sitting here talking to you today. I would not have had the opportunity to join the board of Standard Bank. When I joined the board of Standard Bank, I could ensure that the next CEO was black. The subsequent CEO of Standard Bank was Sim Tshabalala, whom we recruited very early on. If these policies were not there, that would not have happened, because there would be nobody around that table to raise these kinds of issues. Universities have had to deal with the reality of unstable, disruptive and unpredictable environments, universally. And the pandemic is one such environment that universities have shared with other societal institutions. Disruptive and unpredictable winds of change have led to an international pursuit that seeks to understand what it means for managing times of volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity. Like all new things of intellectual curiosity and potential consultancy reaching in the future, there are a lot of flag lighting ideas in this landscape which have not been earthed. Leaders, in a crisis like Covid-19, should be focusing on strategic key points to prepare the organisation for the new normal. Perhaps we have to reimagine the concept of what is normal and how we relate to it. We continue to drive financial prudence in our management of our affairs. We continue to pursue a robust investment strategy and identify investment opportunities. The role and influence of leaders is magnified in times of crisis I did not walk into the sunset like Shane in the Western [film classic], because I love my country too much — even though it put me in prison under apartheid and sustained surveillance by my comrades,” he says, referring to Zuma’s leadership of the ANC. Business and the creation of economic value in society is my passion, not politics. Value cannot be created in society if the political environment is not conducive. That is the territory that concerns me today. My relationship with the Arch began before he became the Arch. He was the secretary general of the SACC, which became my employer when I was released from Robben Island in 1982. My first job was with the East Cape Council of Churches in Port Elizabeth. I had, of course, read (when we could steal or smuggle newspapers into the prison) about Bishop Tutu whilst I was still on the island. Some of the political prisoners were not sold to the role he was playing in the country, especially in the ‘80s. They feared what they called the Muzorewa option. They feared that he was being “cultivated” to be an opposition leader to the Liberation Movement much the same way as Bishop Muzorewa was played in the Zimbabwean political transition. I held a different view. Over the years, I got to know the bishop, later the archbishop, so well and served under him in many roles and capacities. Although it was really a father-son relationship, it was also comradely. He spoke about his relationship with late Archbishop Tutu My first personal encounter with the archbishop was when we were organizing with the SACC, the Colemans, the Black Sash and others, and the Detainees’ Parents Support Committees, which was a support group for parents whose children had been snatched into detention without trial — often with parents not knowing in which prison their children were held. In these early encounters, I noticed his sense of humor and his ability to diffuse very tense situations with disarming humor and candor. In an interview What drew me closer to the Arch was his personality. He was a deeply religious man who did not act piously in an exhibitionist way, who had courage against extreme odds and courage to pronounce his opposition to anything that was wrong without fear or favor. His fight against the necklacing scourge was one example. His political tact and sense of strategy appealed to me. I got closer to the Arch beyond the sphere of work when Brigalia Bam joined the SACC from Geneva. I often accompanied her to the Tutu household given her friendship with Mrs. Tutu and Mrs. Joyce Seroke. I am grateful for the many private moments I shared in the house of the Tutus, both in Soweto and in Cape Town. What drew me closer to the archbishop — other than access to his home — was his spirituality. He was not just a career refugee from the teaching profession that he abandoned when Bantu Education was introduced in 1955. He was a genuinely spiritual being. He restored my faith in Christianity, especially of the Anglican variety, which is the church of my ancestors. He demonstrated that faith has to have consequences and that in an unjust society, it called us to action. I am grateful for this lesson by example. He talks about what drew him closer to him Of the many things I learned from the Arch, I can single out his compassion. The Arch had the birthdays of all the personal assistants of the people he interacted with. On their birthdays, he would send a card to them with a handwritten message to the assistant. I once came across a letter he had written to a prominent staff member terminating his employment at the SACC. The way he conveyed the message without seeking to create an emotional cripple in him was instructive, and I used the lesson when I assumed responsibilities of a similar nature later in life. The way in which he would inquire about the welfare of each individual who was in detention was also touching to me. He spoke on one key thing he has learnt from him If I look back to the formation of the ANC [government], the first danger signs I saw was around 1995. I was heading the ANC selection commission for local government and I was exposed to the extent that people were willing to wreck the organisation for positions. There were even physical assaults and things of this nature and it became clear to me then that the ANC [must do] something about the issue of what we call careerism today. There were few people in the ANC who stood up and said this is wrong and Bulelani lost his job. Then it occurred to me that there were deeper problems in the ANC than I thought. External links Category: living people Category:Politicians from South Africa Category:Businesspeople from South Africa Category:1957 births