Former South African president, F.W. De Klerk, has warned that South Africa is edging ever closer to becoming a racially polarised society.

He was speaking Thursday at his foundation’s annual conference, which commemorated 27 years since his speech in Parliament.

On that day, De Klerk unexpectedly announced former President Nelson Mandela’s release from prison and the lifting of the ban on all anti-apartheid movements.

It has been 27 years since that historic speech in Parliament on Feb 2, 1990, which was the foundation stone on which the country would eventually build its Constitution and democracy.

The former president now believes that the Constitution is at risk because of increasing racial polarisation allegedly perpetrated by the government in pursuit of a National Democratic Revolution.

“Our government has adopted an openly hostile attitude towards white South Africans based on negative racial stereotypes that it avidly propagates and fervently believes,” said de Klerk.

Despite this, however, the former president is optimistic that South Africa will pull through this difficult time not just for itself but also for the continent.

Political economist Moeletsi Mbeki urged businesses to invest in the economy, as a failure to do so could raise inequality levels even further.

“If you have the disincentive to investment that the government is driving today we will never be able to change this structure of the society that we have here, because there will be no job creation, there will be no new investment and therefore South Africa is indeed faced with enormous risk,” said Mbeki.

Former Constitutional Court judge Zak Yacoob added that for South Africans to fulfil their potential they have to know their Constitution and live out its Bill of Rights every single day.

“The less the intervention of the courts is required the better. Unless this would rendered possible if all embrace the Constitution, live out its values and make sure that we in first place understand the Constitution and try and comply with it,” said Yacoob.

Business tycoon Christo Wiese urged both the government and business to take their cues from the Constitution to benefit every South African.

“To deal with our current problems we have inter-alia the national development plan and we’ve heard our world class Constitution both will serve us well if implemented and upheld respectively,” said Wiese.

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK