Whatever floats your boat! That’s what I thought when I saw the predraft South African Shipping Company (Sasco) Bill, 2022, which was published on November 1 “to provide for the establishment of Sasco, to develop and promote efficient international and domestic shipping services provided by Sasco, and to provide for matters connected therewith”. Members of the public who would like to submit comments on this Bill should do so on or before December 1.
So, the ‘briquette’ aspires to mirror its BRIC counterparts – Brazil, Russia, India and China – by having its own ships. If you need reminding, cast your mind back to the instalment of this column that was published on August 10, 2018, and was titled ‘Four Brics and a briquette’.
The desire to own a boat reminds me of my grandfather’s joke that the two best days of owning a boat are the day you buy it and the day you sell it. On the topic of selling, does the South African Marine Corporation ring a bell? On June 26, 1946, this shipping company was established following an agreement between Dr Hendrik Johannes van der Bijl and Henry Mercer, founder and president of the States Marine Corporation. Van der Bijil was an industrialist with no equal; he is regarded as one of the greatest South Africans for his contribution to this country’s development. He was the driving force (read ʻfounder’) of the Elektrisiteitsvoorsieningskommissie (Evkom), better known as Eskom; the South African Steel & Iron Corporation (Iskor), now ArcelorMittal South Africa; and the African Metals Corporation (Amcor).
Concerning the South African Marine Corporation, it was better known as Safmarine and, in 1999, it was acquired by AP Moller-Maersk Group, with the latter committing to retain the Safmarine brand instead of integrating it wholly into Maersk Sealand. However, despite its commitment, Maersk announced on September 1, 2020, that it would close the Safmarine brand at the end of that year.
So, since 1999, South Africa has been without a national carrier to sail the seven seas. If ever there is a quiz, these are the Arctic, Atlantic, Indian, Pacific, Mediterranean and Caribbean seas, as well as the Gulf of Mexico.
But why the obsession with having a national carrier? Could government be paying homage to the words of American musician Frank Zappa: “You cannot be a real country unless you have a beer and an airline. It helps if you have some kind of a football team, or some nuclear weapons, but at the very least you need a beer.” Well, SABMiller was also sold. South Africa barely has an airline now, and Zappa makes no mention of having a boat. Should you need to be reminded of the airline, read the column of May 22, 2020, titled: ‘Look mommy, there’s no plane up in the sky’.
The desire for a shipping company is apparently due to the fact that “the shipping of our essential imports and exports is mostly reliant on foreign governments and companies and this might not be able to shield South Africa from supply chain disruption, especially during times of natural disaster or international conflict”. No mention of the ‘R’ word – recession. Is now really the time to push the boat out instead of battening down the hatches.
So, just how is Sasco going to be funded? Apparently, the funds for the acquisition of the ships will come from government as well as from the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC). Quite ironically, and to test whether you have been paying attention, guess who was the founder of the IDC? Van der Bijl, of course!
As to whether Sasco would make waves, be left high and dry, or, more critically, whether it will be above board remains to be seen. Is this not simply a “ship high in transit” idea?