Partnership Required. David Lipschitz letter to the Cape Times published Mon 4 Jul 2016

At my meeting with Mr Nagel, he spoke about engagement vs partnership.

I needed time to think about this before writing to you, as these are incredibly powerful words and concepts.

Mr Nagel said that the minibus taxi industry had engaged with the cities and government, but that they didn't see each other as partners.

Engaged, to me, signifies that a (minimal) level of communication and commitment has been achieved.

A partnership would signal a full integration and full commitment of both parties to a process of growing and getting better together.

Getting "engaged" to someone signifies commitment, but there is still an easy "out".

You lose the engagement ring and perhaps you feel dumped. You recover and get on with your life.

Once people are "engaged" they might get married and this signifies a full commitment to each other, a full partnership, a full trust and love for each other.

Each person in a partnership or marriage wants the best for the other person and goes out of their way to help this person achieve the best they possibly can in the relationship.

The city of Cape Town and the other cities in South Africa, and the ANC and DA governments in the country, need to get into bed with the taxi industry, instead of staying in the lounge!

Full partnerships are required where both parties receive the best possible value out of their relationship, instead of simply engaging with each other.

In this way I believe that South Africa will move in the right direction.

Time well spent learning from a man of Nagel's Calibre. David Lipschitz letter to the Cape Times published Wed 29 Jun 2016

Thank you for publishing my letter regarding the taxi industry last week, and for publishing Mr Nagel's reply on June 24. I accepted his invitation for coffee as requested in his letter.

On Monday, at 4.30pm, Mr Nagel ("rhymes with Bagel") and I met at Mugg & Bean at Cavendish Square for "coffee". Actually he had scrambled eggs on toast and a cappuccino and I had a cheese and tomato omelette without toast and with camomile tea.

We spoke for two hours.

Please note that Mr Nagel said that I could write about "everything" he told me.

In our time together, I learnt about 50 years of the private "black" taxi industry in South Africa, from the days of Valiants to the apartheid government's insistence on the introduction of their own buses to transport township folk from the outlying townships that that government had created, to the cities, and then to the taxi industry saying that there weren't enough buses, and then to the change from Valiants to the kinds of minibus taxis we see today.

It was a fascinating journey for me. Mr Nagel's family has been in the taxi industry for three generations and Mr Nagel himself for 42 years. I met an open and honest man of integrity.

One of the things that Mr Nagel is upset about is that the ANC government has not undone the wrongs of apartheid planning regarding the taxis. "Routes" and "radiuses" are still the same as they have always been. Opportunities for the taxi industry to work with the Post Office have been missed.

We both believe that there is huge scope for the advancement of the taxi industry in South Africa, and for the taxi industry to be a catalyst that gets South Africa moving again.

Thank you for publishing our letters, and for helping to make this meeting happen.

Africa for those who have Ubuntu in veins. David Lipschitz letter to the Cape Times published Thu 23 Jun 2016

I read of riots. I read posts on Facebook from my friends who see darkness and not light.

"South Africa is ruined" is the refrain. And in these same people I see "armchair activists", apathetic people who will pick up a pen, but not get out into the streets and make a difference. These armchair activists are a pathetic (apathetic) sight! There are lots of good people around. I have been traveling with them in Uber and in minibus taxis for the past week.

I have so much confidence in them that I am selling my car and going private.

Getting off public transport and going private? The wrong way around? Nope: Uber is run and managed and governed privately, and is regulated privately. The driver and the passenger rate and comment on each other.

Minibus taxis are private. They are "a law unto themselves". They "own" the road. And soon they will also have their own app. And be twice as strong as they are now.

Africans, and those born here, have Ubuntu running in our veins. We want the very best for each other. We love and are compassionate no matter what names we are called. My black friends are called "k******" whilst I am told "your grandparents should have perished in the Holocaust!".

I too am an "outcast" who "society" is trying to cast away. Why? Because I am free. Just as my African brothers and sisters are truly free, owning land in the Eastern Cape, with fresh mountain water, the highest quality food in the world, and the best outdoor environment known to mankind.

Just ask where they go on holiday and you will know where their hearts and minds are whilst challenged daily in "the city".

Yet the fisherman's net has been cast and the lure of the city awaits. Bright lights and noise attract people seeking "the light".

And "the light" is already in their hearts and minds.

I've decided to simplify my business by adopting a cash system. David Lipschitz letter to the Cape Times published Mon 20 Jun 2016

I've decided to shut my Pty Ltd after almost 22 years in "corporate" business.

There is really no reason to have one of these monsters anymore.

All the red tape is really bad and still getting worse. Legislation is getting more and more complex, and more and more onerous for SMMEs.

And the so-called protections that directors once enjoyed are almost gone. My business will continue as David Lipschitz, sole proprietor. Kind of has a nice ring to it, don't you think?

No more: VAT returns, PAYE and UIF returns, six monthly reconciliations, payments on the last day of the month and the 7th day of the month, VAT audits, no need for R15 000 of accounting fees every year, no need for corporate lawyers, no need for annual CIPRO fees, no need for special private and company insurance structures.

I can run my business on the "cash system" instead of the "profit and loss (P&L) system".

In my humble opinion, the P&L system is almost meaningless, and is subject to infinite manipulation, making company law more and more complex, and more and more difficult to implement, which is making the corruption in company accounts worse and worse.

I have done everything right in my business, but I am treated with suspicion and I don't want to be a part of this negative energy system anymore.

The company's act and regulations on companies and directors make director's life a misery of spending inordinate amounts of time reading new "governance" requirements on businesses, most of which are common sense if one runs an ethical and aware business.

Yes, I expect that as a sole proprietor, I might pay more tax, but I'll immediately save a month of bureaucratic red tape, even with my wife doing most of the actual bookkeeping. And my stress levels will dramatically decrease, thus making me a better person.

And I've been taking Uber and minibus taxis for the past two weeks and I've met truly amazing people.

Hoping to sell my car and "go public" once again, for the first time since 1995. Less insurance. Less worry. Maybe these minibus taxi guys don't have any liability insurance but, you know, with the right approach they will change, especially if someone writes an Uber type app for the Minibus Taxis.

I have worked out a new business model to grow the minibus taxi industry, and I've already activated two of my mentees to work on this project.

Yes, my commute will take 1.5 hours instead of 45 minutes, and three minibus taxis instead of one car, but I don't need to drive and I've always wanted "a driver." If we can get the suburban people into the minibus taxis, imagine what a revolution this would be. Routes would multiply, and soon my commute would be 45 minutes again.

I survived eight years of commuting in England and Australia.

I'm sure I can survive many more years here.

Looking forward to my new life, where I will have more time to spend on the environmental and human causes I care so passionately about.