Cyril poked the eye of the bear - Col. Chris Wyatt

Loading player...
South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa poked “the bear in the eye” and gave “the middle finger” to the US when he signed the Land Expropriation Bill. This was the reaction from US inteligence analyst Retired Colonel Chris Wyatt to the announcement by President Donald Trump that he was cutting US funding for South Africa. Reacting to subsequent news that Ramaphosa was looking forward to meeting Trump, Colonel Wyatt said: “But he wasn't asking or hoping to meet with Trump 24 hours ago. Now, was he? Isn't that strange how one tweet changes the entire game? So, you know, Trump is playing three dimensional chess and the ANC is playing checkers. Who do you think is going to win.” Col. Wyatt maintains that South Africa also doesn’t deserve the benefits of the AGOA - and charges that the African National Congress (ANC) “runs around like there are no consequences to their actions”.  He predicts there are tough times ahead for South Africa. “…We finally have a new sheriff in town who is not going to let America be taken for suckers…the ANC is ignoring us and we're giving you tons of resources and money and there's a risk to this. So I think what's happening here is that Trump has put down a shot across the bow to warn the ANC that we won't tolerate this.”
3 Feb 2025 8AM English South Africa Investing · Business News

Other recent episodes

Juanita Du Preez: Police- and political capture - more worms crawl out the can…

There have been dramatic scenes in Parliament where the Ad Hoc Committee has resumed hearing testimony of police and political capture. In her latest interview with BizNews, Juanita du Preez of Action Society speaks to Chris Steyn about Crime Intelligence (CI) Chief General Dumisani Khumalo’s warning that criminal organisations survive…
21 Jan 6AM 22 min

The Editor's Desk - Wed 21 Jan 2026: A fading global order and the Trump liability

In today’s analysis, we explore Mark Carney’s powerful address at the World Economic Forum, where he urges middle-ground nations like South Africa to "name reality" and act together against the rivalry of global giants. We also examine why right-wing parties in France and Germany are increasingly distancing themselves from Donald…
21 Jan 4AM 16 min