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Speech by Dave Steward to the Toastmasters Club, Cape Town, 28 September 2012

Dave Steward

FW de Klerk Foundation

SPEECH BY DAVE STEWARD TO THE TOASTMASTERS CLUB
CAPE TOWN, 28 SEPTEMBER 2012

"MARIKANA, O MARIKANA!"

When future historians write the story of South Africa they might well identify the Marikana incident as the turning point in the evolution of the New South Africa.

The story is too banal to be a tragedy and too desperately serious to be a farce.

The dramatis personae include Lonmin; the striking miners and their break-away union AMCU; the NUM; the media; Julius Malema; the police and the government.

This has not been a happy time for Lonmin which is the world’s third largest producer of platinum. Only four years ago Lonmin turned down an offer from Xstrata to buy the company for R80 billion. Now its value has slumped to just over R16 billion.

Lonmin is also under serious pressure from depressed platinum prices and rising costs. Labour costs which account for 36% of expenses have been increasing by 10% per annum since 1994. Electricity costs - which make up 10% of expenses - have risen by more than 50% in the past three years.

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