Director's Cut: BEE is breaking South Africa - Gerhard Papenfus v Gwede Mantashe

In this candid and hard-hitting interview, Alec Hogg speaks to Gerhard Papenfus, CEO of the National Employers’ Association of South Africa, about his open letter condemning Black Economic Empowerment. Papenfus argues that BEE has distorted markets, damaged entrepreneurship, and entrenched elitism rather than broad-based upliftment. He challenges prevailing political narratives, questions the sustainability of empowerment through ownership transfers, and calls for merit-based economic reform to restore growth, accountability, and genuine inclusion.