Tony Leon questions whether current ANC and DA leadership can deliver on their repeated promises while staying true to their ideological foundations in the government of national unity. Bar the fact that both Winston Churchill, who saved the world from Nazism, and Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, current ruler of Dubai, loved horse racing, there [...]
Join George Herald journalist Marguerite van Ginkel as she sits down with Tony Leon. Watch the full interview for a candid conversation filled with history, wisdom, and practical insights from one of South Africa’s most experienced political voices. https://youtu.be/nM6G6uhg8Dw
Not since August 1971, when US President Richard Nixon permanently ended the “gold standard” – the last formal link between the precious nugget and major currencies – has the yellow metal enjoyed such prominence. Today it’s in the news again as the spot price of gold recently hit a record high: $ 4 300 per [...]
By using Machiavelli to diagnose Ramaphosa and the ANC’s leadership, Tony Leon argues that they have achieved the worst possible outcome - neither feared nor loved by voters. The works of Niccolò Machiavelli - the medieval Florentine philosopher and diplomat - are still cited as a how-to manual for effective leadership in all realms. Machiavelli’s reputation as [...]
In a striking historical irony, the ANC’s defiant rhetoric against Western sanctions eerily mirrors PW Botha’s failed 1986 stance, while the party’s romanticised invocation of Codesa for today’s National Dialogue fundamentally misunderstands how apartheid actually ended – through backroom bilateral negotiations, not public consultation, writes Tony Leon. “History doesn’t repeat itself, but it often rhymes”, is [...]
https://www.news24.com/multimedia/podcasts/podcast-the-lead-tony-leon-on-the-state-of-the-gnu-the-da-and-brown-envelopes-20250806-1023
It is a case of every man, woman or party for themselves, and the country buckles in the absence of joined-up government, writes Tony Leon. In Zbig, a new and fascinating biography of the late hardline US National Security Advisor, Zbigniew Brzezinski, Edward Luce writes, “figures in senior [government] roles have no time to replenish their stock [...]
https://www.news24.com/weekender/interview-tony-leon-on-the-gnu-helen-zille-and-the-joy-of-dachshunds-20250523-0441
https://www.netwerk24.com/netwerk24/kunste/boeke/intieme-blik-op-n-besonderse-loopbaan-20250525
Tony Leon considers the first anniversary of South Africa’s coalition government, reflecting on the ANC’s political decline, the DA’s limited power in the partnership, and the challenges of restoring voter faith amid mounting dissatisfaction. On 11 June 2024, exactly one year ago, the DA presented its “framework agreement” for a coalition government to govern South Africa [...]
