Small group of elites successfully turned tax money into Bentleys and Lamborghinis

Connie Mulder, head of the Solidarity Research Institute, said BEE enabled a small group of people to successfully turn tax money into Bentleys.

Mulder shared his views on Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) during an interview on the Maroela Media programme, Nog n Enetjie.

He argued that instead of helping the poor, current race-based legislation like BEE has mostly benefited a small, politically connected elite.

An example of the elite is President Cyril Ramaphosa’s nephew, Hangwani Morgan Maumela, a central figure in the Tembisa Hospital corruption scandal.

In late 2025, the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) conducted raids on Maumela’s properties in Sandton and a dealership in Mpumalanga.

The most notable part of the seizure involved a fleet of ultra-luxury vehicles, including a Rolls-Royce Cullinan and a Ferrari 812 Superfast.

The Special Investigating Unit also seized a Ferrari 488 GTB, two Aston Martins, and three Lamborghinis during the recovery operation.

Although not all BEE deals are corrupt, Mulder argued that the legislation enabled corruption, as highlighted during the Zondo Commission report.

“Because the system puts race at the heart of upliftment, it naturally opens the door to massive corruption,” Mulder said.

Mulder describes the African National Congress (ANC) as standing on a patronage network that depends on tax money to keep itself rich.

He argues that Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) legislation is the mechanism they use to channel money into this network.

“Empowerment policies have failed to solve poverty, unemployment, or inequality. Instead, it led to fat black tenderpreneurs getting richer,” he said.

The ANC says BEE is going nowhere

In recent years, opposition to Black Economic Empowerment has grown across the private sector and political parties.

Mining analyst Peter Major said South Africa’s mining sector can be rejuvenated by changing the mining policies and removing BEE as it is currently devised.

Efficient Group chief economist Dawie Roodt also said South Africa must get rid of harmful policies, like National Health Insurance (NHI) and BEE.

“We need to really empower black people. This is not this crony protection and crony empowerment that we have in South Africa,” he said.

Despite calls to do away with BEE growing louder, the ANC is doubling down on its BEE policies.

In February 2026, President Cyril Ramaphosa explicitly denounced calls to abolish BEE, describing the issue as touching a raw nerve.

He insisted that BEE had been fundamental to improving the lives of black people in South Africa, reducing inequality, and reversing the injustices of the past.

“It is no accident that the level of poverty in the black African population fell from 67% in 2006 to 44% in 2023,” he said.

“Nor is it any accident that the level of poverty in the coloured population fell from 43% to 25% in the same period.”

Deputy President Paul Mashatile also said abandoning Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) is not an option. 

He argued that abandoning B‑BBEE would amount to abandoning transformation itself, which is a necessary tool for transformation and economic equality.

BEE costs South Africa R290 billion a year

The Free Market Foundation and Solidarity said BEE compliance costs the South African economy up to R290 billion a year.

In addition, there is lost economic activity, which equates to around 3% of South Africa’s entire annual gross domestic product (GDP).

Their research further indicated that the BEE policy framework has had severe negative consequences for the economy.

The impact includes more than R5 trillion in cumulative economic losses since 2004, and approximately 192,000 jobs are foregone each year.

The Institute of Race Relations (IRR) said that the government can save taxpayers R150 billion by eliminating BEE premiums.

On Monday, 2 March 2026, IRR Legal submitted a report to Parliament on the constitutional duty of making BEE premiums in public procurement explicit.

IRR Legal also called on Parliament to use the 2026 Budget review process to bring BEE premiums down to zero.

It added that its polling showed that four out of every five voters likely want BEE premiums to be zero.