South Africa missed the last mining boom as a result of the inadequacy of rail and energy infrastructure – which is in government hands – and could miss the next one as a result of the inadequacy of legislation, the correction of which is also in government hands. The country continues to play fast and lose with the on-and-off amendments to the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act (MPRDA). While this has been going on for half a decade, other African countries have been creating constructive mining codes that are attracting the kind of inward investment that South Africa needs for the economic growth that is needed to beat the triple scourges of unemployment, inequality and poverty. A constructive MPRDA, professional bureaucracy and proper infrastructure would expose errant labour behaviour as being selfishly opposed to the eradication of our triple scourges.