STARLINK DEAL A THREAT TO SA'S SOVEREIGNTY

'What begins with special concessions, ends in state capture'

- SIYABONGA SITHOLE

COMMUNICATIONS and Digital Technologies Minister Solly Malatsi's policy directive that could pave the way for Starlink satellite internet service to operate without the requisite BBBEE laws means the country's sovereignty has been held at ransom by people who have been throwing insults against it.

“We are not against Starlink or the investment but against the changing of our laws to accommodate individuals and people who do not respect the country and its laws. We would have lost the country's sovereignty as no one is exempted from complying with the laws of the country,” said Black Business Council (BBC) CEO Kganki Matabane.

He was reacting to reports that Starlink, owned by Pretoria-born billionaire Elon Musk, might operate in South Africa without meeting the 30% HDG (historically disadvantaged groups) ownership requirement in the ICT sector - through an Equity Equivalent Programme (EEP).

Malatsi’s gazette under the Electronic Communications Act (ECA), a day after President Cyril Ramaphosa returned from his White House meeting with US President Donald Trump and Musk, has come under intense scrutiny.

During this meeting, South African billionaire Johann Rupert, who was part of Ramaphosa’s delegation, told Musk that the country needed to have a starlink satellite in every police station.