Mutumwa Mawere

On 6 April, 2006, Gencor shareholders approved the voluntary winding-up and delisting of the company, bringing an end to a 111-year mining story.

The democratisation of South Africa ushered a new era of transparency and yet the country's heritage remains less understood by our generation.

Gencor was a South African corporate citizen with a complex and interesting heritage.

In its heyday, Gencor represented the might of Afrikaner capital with investments in Gengold, Impala Platinum (Implats), Richards Bay Minerals, Samancor, Trans-Natal and the Alusaf and Columbus projects.

Gencor was formed in 1980 from the amalgamation of General Mining and Finance Corporation and Union Corporation and Union Corporation.

Gencor was unbundled and assets sold off when it became clear that an ANC-led government was coming to power. Its R18 billion stake in Implats was sold off.

On 28 April 2006, a liquidation dividend of R69.7 million was paid out to shareholders of Gencor ending the long chapter of uninterrupted and profitable corporate existence.

The role played by German-born personalities in South Africa's corporate civilization has to be understood so should be the interface between English and Jewish players in building a corporate foundation that is still intact today and more significantly that outlived the founders.

I must confess that I was not aware that Gencor had a Jewish heritage. General Mining, one of the two pillars of Gencor, was established in 1895 by two German-born Jewish brothers, George and Leopold Albus.

George Albu (1857-1935) was a mining magnate in the diamond and gold industries of South Africa. George was born in Brandenburg, Germany.

He and his brother, Leopold, immigrated to South Africa in 1876 with no cash in their hands. They knew then as many of South Africa's new immigrants that there is nothing inevitable in life. They must have known after the diamond rush that South Africa offered more promise than Germany.

History records that on arrival in Cape Town, George became an assistant at the haberdashery counter in Stuttfords and the brothers subsequently moved to the diamond-rich Kimberley where they quickly accumulated financial interests that they sold to Rhodes' De Beers for a substantial profit.

The brothers then settled in the Afrikaner controlled Transvaal where they naturalised as citizens in 1887.

It is recorded that George Albu purchased the ailing Meyer and Charlton Mine, restructured it, and on 30 December 1895 General Mining and Finance Corporation was born.

Like Afred Beit, George naturalized as a UK citizen in 1911 and on 12 February he was created 1st Baronet Albu of Johannesburg. At that time baronetcies were bestowed on a large number of Randlords in recognition of their role in advancing British interests.

It was not unusual that German-born settlers would gravitate towards English values instead of retaining their German heritage. England adopted all successful entrepreneurs and in so doing created a link between its future and the territories in which English values were crystallised as the basis of nation building.

What is instructive is that most of the Randlords were victims of prejudice in their places of birth like Germany where Jewish people were targeted.

After accumulating wealth in Africa, most of the Randlords retired in England.

Their journey to England often involved a transit in Africa where wealth was easier to accumulate and then buy their way to British aristocracy.

In a sense, African resources facilitated the transformation of ordinary white settlers into British aristocracy.

From humble origins, by 1910, General Mining was financing and managing seven gold mines, of which West Rand Consolidated is still operational. In 1954, the company acquired Strathmore Consolidated Investments. After the gold-bearing reef was discovered, Stilfontein, Ellaton and Buffelsfontein mines were established. Stilfontein and Buffelsfontein are still in production.

When the Afrikaners assume control of the state, they began to implement an empowerment strategy that involved acquisition of strategic assets that were hitherto dominated by English-speaking businessmen.

The displacement of English speaking businessmen was systematic and deliberate. State power, where necessary, was borrowed to assist Afrikaners in negotiating with their English business adversaries.

As a consequence, in the 1960s and 1970s, General Mining merged with Federale Mynbou and Union Corporation which then became Gencor in 1980, then Billiton, then BHP Billiton, one of the largest mining houses in the world with interests in China, Australia, Borneo, South America and South Africa.

Together with Rhodes, Rudd, Alfred Biet and others, George belonged to the class of people who laid the foundations of corporate South Africa.

They all benefited from Africa's resources but what is instructive is that they were able to build enduring legacies.

Without George, it is clear that the story of South Africa will not be complete. It is for our generation to bridge the knowledge gap that connects the past and the present.

We all know that there is nothing we can do to change our past but there is a lot more we can do to shape and influence our future.

The story of Albu demonstrates that the sophisticated industrial, financial, agricultural and services heritage that South Africa boasts of was built by ordinary people who were motivated not by group interests by personal drive and passion.

They succeeded in converting Africa's resource endowments into personal wealth and in so doing uplifted their dignity and increased degrees of freedom to do what they wanted to do.

The Imperial Administration was ready to adopt such men of vision and enterprise as its own. They were recognised in Britain ( not in their countries of birth) and the factory for awards became the instrument through which colonialism became connected with the personal pursuits of the Randlords.

Those that did not make it in Africa knew that Britain would be as hostile to them as it was to the majority who did not venture into the unknown territories of Africa.

If Africa could deliver promise to people like Albu, why is it that many of us believe that we cannot scale the heights and climb the opportunity ladder without the assistance of the state? The colonial administration really only became relevant in identifying recipients of awards.

We can learn from George that the harder one works the luckier one can become and it is true that Africa has been good to foreign-born players. Africa can also be good to us if we invest in its future.

George left a legacy for us to learn from and so we must