Grilled government

South Africa: MTN CEO joins club of ‘failed state’ chorus

By Ray Mwareya

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Posted on March 20, 2023 10:20

A man walks past an MTN logo outside the company’s headquarters in Johannesburg, South Africa, March 13, 2023. REUTERS

MTN’s Ralph Mupita becomes the latest CEO to warn that South Africa’s vanishing electricity, rising crime rates, flailing infrastructure, and organised corruption have become an existential threat.

His warning that South Africa risks becoming a “failed state” might be the harshest so far among leading industry figures. “The time to speak truth to power is now,” said Mupita, while tackling the financial results of Africa’s largest cellphone corporation.

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