Tim Cohen
13 July 2009
opinion
Johannesburg — IT's hard to know what to make of the new Anglo American chairman, Sir John Parker. From a pure announcement point of view, it was a bit uncomfortable.
While SA's press was speculating it would be a black South African, the British press had already been told who it was, partly it seems as the mines ministry may have been playing a bit of politics.
This wouldn't matter particularly except for the fact that whether Anglo is losing focus on South African interests and the British-SA tug of war over the fate of the group is part of the politics of the issue. Flubbing disclosure this way reflects the identity crisis miffing South African shareholders.
It seems questionable whether Anglo should take on a new chairman with another heavyweight job and undertaking to spend only part of the week attending to Anglo issues, especially as one of those issues is the possibility of a hostile merger with a rival.
But in a way it's an understandable choice. With most of its assets and investors now outside SA, the priority is to get the City onside in the fight looming with Xstrata. A respected figure in the British business establishment is critical.
Mineral Resources Minister Susan Shabangu accepts the appointment graciously, but there are plenty of complaints. Anglo's board is amazingly light on South Africans, a big part of its past, present and future. SA's government must take some responsibility for this too; it wants Anglo to be a national champion, but constructed a restrictive, difficult financial and regulatory environment.
It's hard for Anglo to champion SA convincingly when government allies call for its existence to be terminated through nationalisation.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2009 Business Day. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
