The Burning Platform - Level Up

Where Does SA Stand Economically?

The team - alongside Daniel Silke, who is a political economy analyst, keynote speaker, author and futurist - discuss the recent Budget Speech and have a straightforward conversation about where South Africa stands economically. Nando's · The Burning Platform

4 Mar 2021 58 min

2021 Budget Speech in a Nutshell

With the recent 2021 fiscal spending plans of the National Budget being unveiled by Finance Minister Tito Mboweni... Gareth, Phumi, and Jamie (lawyer, award-winning debater and political analyst) have a candid conversation about the tax increases, debt to GDP, and our government’s simple-minded approach to solving our current financial issues…

25 Feb 2021 56 min

Too Many Old White Men

Racial politics are a hot topic this week as Phumi states that there are too many white men in one particular party. Playing the blame game seems to be second nature when it comes to our politicians. Do we have a toxic relationship when it comes to corporate and government?…

18 Feb 2021 50 min

Cancelled elections & a Leadership rift

Has Cyril Ramaphosa been a weak leader for the ANC and South Africa at large? What is the big difference between Cyril and Jacob Zuma when it comes to leadership? What is the role of the Zondo Commission within the South African legal landscape? Do South Africans need to worry…

11 Feb 2021 51 min

Are we Addicted to the ANC?

Are we taking too long to roll out the COVID-19 vaccine? With a declining economy, how much worse must it get before it gets better? Maybe it’s time to admit that many South Africans might be addicted to the ANC. Leading the conversation this week is Lecturer at the Central…

4 Feb 2021 53 min

Undoing Trump's legacy

Biden’s inaugural address was a soulful plea to come together. After being in office for a week he has already overturned Donald Trump’s ban on transgender people serving in the US military, and rejoined the Paris climate agreement... is President Joe Biden better than Trump, or will the honeymoon phase…

28 Jan 2021 55 min

End of an American Era

If a mere seven more MPs had voted with Prime Minister JBM Hertzog in favour of neutrality, South Africa's history would have been quite different. Will we see more war under the administration of US President Joe Biden? Nando's · The Burning Platform

21 Jan 2021 50 min

Biden Our Time with Vaccines

Grave concern in Mozambique, where the impotence of the African Union is compounded by crushing poverty and the actions of Muslim fundamentalists, who are converting vulnerable civilians at the end of a barrel. The team discusses the potential for corruption around the Covid vaccine process in South Africa, and how…

14 Jan 2021 56 min

Don't PANDA to Big Pharma

Nick Hudson, co-founder of Pandemics Data and Analytics (PANDA) joins the Burning Platform to discuss what the data suggests about the effectiveness of lockdowns on a cost-to-benefit ratio. There’s a discussion around the media’s role in stoking pandemic panic, before moving on to the subject of a vaccine - its…

7 Jan 2021 56 min

Second wave and the Garden Route

As South Africa prepares for the Covid 'second wave', the ruling party has elected to limit access to beaches, potentially crippling the tourism industry. How long will the Garden Route take to recover economically from the current lockdown, and were there any options that would have limited the spread of…

17 Dec 2020 51 min

Matrics are all the Covid Rage

As the South African government clamps down on high school students and their celebrations after finishing school, how should we view the admonishment of these gatherings and them being labelled Covid-19 'superspreader' events? The National Pharmaceutical Agency is being floated again - red flag or good news? Nando's · The…

10 Dec 2020 57 min

Unions and broken State apparatus

If you are building an organisation which is in public service, should you have to reveal all your funding sources? We have seen the erosion of State institutions over the past 20 years - can the poor survive without functional state apparatus? Is the relationship between unions and the ANC…

3 Dec 2020 52 min

Cyril, Activism and Bumbling Corruption

Is the notion of 16 Days of Activism purely performative, or are South African authorities actually serious about quashing this social ill? How important is it for people to know who pays for a newspaper organisation to be in business? Is Cyril Ramaphosa losing the trust of South Africans across…

26 Nov 2020 52 min

The PIC is on the table

Is there collusion between the ANC and the corporate world, and should this concern South Africans moving forward? The IRR and SA citizens have been misled by South African banks, which is being revealed as conversations between government and the big banks spill into the public domain. Our government is…

19 Nov 2020 55 min

Identity Politics and Opposition Dilution

Helen Zille joins the Burning Platform this week to discuss Cyril Ramaphosa's address to South Africa coming out of the global pandemic. The by-election results for the DA were mixed... what was the reason for the strategy adopted for this election period? Is the presence of a multitude of small…

12 Nov 2020 57 min

US Election: Reality Show of the Year

How is it that in 2020 the US Election can still be shrouded in this much controversy when it comes to vote counting? Is the Democrat voter base reactionary and lazy? Is the USA falling apart, as they seem to be divided right down the middle as a country? Is…

5 Nov 2020 55 min

Debt and Taxes

Why did Tito go off script during his Medium Term Budget Speech? Were his comments about Tygerberg Hospital unethical, and how much power does he have in reality? Is SAA a distraction, or simply a failing SOE? It's important to keep an eye on the Zondo Commission so you are better informed for…

29 Oct 2020 56 min

Laptops and Oval Office nightmares

For the umpteenth time, South Africans are having to hear the term "economic restructuring" as part of the recovery plan for the country's economy from the ANC-led government. Are we to trust Cyril Ramaphosa to lead us to the promised land, or should we be sceptical as citizens? Hunter Biden…

22 Oct 2020 1 hr 01 min

Pollsters vs Performers

As South Africans grapple with the economic carnage of the Covid-19 lockdown, is the ANC going to actually address the Covid-19 relief corruption scandal, or are they just going to be performative political actors? What is Julius Malema's endgame? The EFF and the ANC seem to be in cahoots, should…

15 Oct 2020 52 min

Land restitution and VBS

The Senekal protests have brought to light the issue of farmers and farmworkers being murdered. Is the matter a racial issue, or a political tool to sow division within the South African populus? Is legal land restitution possible if administered correctly by the South African government? Is violence necessary for…

8 Oct 2020 53 min