SACP Free State Statement of the 6th Provincial Executive Committee Meeting of the 7th Provincial Congress
The South African Communist Party (SACP) in the Free State held its ordinary plenary session of the Provincial Executive Committee in Sasolburg - Zamdela - Multipurpose/Harry Gwala Centre on the 11th February 2018. This plenary session received a report on the decisions of the 2017 Augmented Central Committee, SACP Free State 2018 program of action detailing organisational tasks ahead of us and further conducted a political assessment of both the provincial, national and international developments.
A detail reflection was made on the following important matters:
Building a Left Popular Front
On the basis of organisational and political lessons learnt from the municipal by-elections held on 29 November 2017 in Metsimaholo Local Municipality, the SACP in the province is now more than ever committed to build the Left Popular Front (LPF).
It is through the LPF that the gains of our revolution will be defended, the ills in our society fought and working class struggles in our communities deepened and advanced through collective efforts of all left progressive forces.
This important task will among others require the SACP and the trade union movement to gear-up the fight against corruption in our government and private sector, and remain alive to the fact that corruption beneficiaries and/or corruption-syndicates will do everything in their power to target those who fight corruption or those who comply with the law.
In our province, we have seen a culture of rewarding, promoting and relocating the corrupt elements from one municipality to another, from one department to another, etc. The SACP commits and will further engage our unions and other progressive forces in the province to fight corruption and protect our communities and those honest workers and/or shop-stewards who are targeted, with some currently on suspension throughout the province.
Poor State of our Municipalities
As the SACP in the province we have for some time now, since mid - 2016, called for an alliance meeting to have focus discussions on the state of our municipalities and the revolution in general. Unfortunately, even when agreed at the alliance level, such an important session never took place.
The crisis of state capture must not only be limited or understood to be only at the national government, but is even more rife in the provincial government(s) and municipalities, with the Vrede debacle and Maluti-a-Phofung Municipality being immediate examples, respectively.
As the SACP in the province we are fully convinced that State Capture has direct relationship with corruption. The problem of financial mismanagement is widespread amongst many municipalities in the province. In our view, it is corruption that has made it easy for some municipalities such as Maluti-a-Phofung, Moqhaka, Masilonyana, etc. not to pay the third parties, which ultimately result in non-payment of worker for their labour. We call on municipalities to respect the hard work of workers and pay their dues to third parties.
Maluti-a-Phofung Crisis
The SACP together with COSATU had publicly went out on numerous occasions to fight for a speedy and sustainable resolution on Phuthaditjhaba water and electricity crisis and the deep seated systemic challenges in the municipality. Related to these, the SACP has also called for the removal of the Mayor - Cllr. Vusi Tshabalala. The January 2017 SACP Free State statement bears reference to this matter.
Both the SACP and COSATU had raised the issue, the removal of Mayor - Cllr. Vusi Tshabalala, with the leadership of the ANC in the province on number of occasions but until this far the ANC leadership has not acted on the matter. The crisis in the municipality has now spiraled out into widespread community protest.
The SACP vehemently opposes the provincial governments' intervention through Section 139 in Maluti-a-Phofung but rather calls for intervention through Section 154. This will enable both provincial and national government to assist in addressing the deep financial difficulties faced by the Municipality. Integral to ensuring stability in the municipality, the SACP reiterate its call for the leadership of the ANC to recall the Mayor Cllr. Vusi Tshabalala with immediate effect.
Public Protector Report on Vrede Dairy
The SACP find the public protector's "report of convenience" meant to shield political principals very problematic. We are opposed to the continuous behaviour of abusing state institutions to divert blame to ordinary workers at the shameless defense of corrupt politicians. The exact same behaviour of shifting the corruption blame to ordinary workers was seen in Nkandla and Waterkloof SAGAs while at the same time, same political figures, as common denominators, are left untouched.
The same is now witnessed in its worse form where the vital office of Public Protector is now turned into a personal tool of politicians used to whitewash their shenanigans. We hope and believe that we will see the security cluster of our country acting with speed to bring to book those implicated in acts of corruption and fraud in our province on the Vrede Dairy, including the political principals involved.
As the SACP in the province we strongly reject this report of the Public Protector and we caution her that, if she fails to uphold the integrity and stature of her office and act with honesty, dignity and fairness, we will be left with no other option but to call for her removal.
The State of the Revolution in the Province
In our province, the ANC, which is the leader of the alliance, is undergoing a very difficult moment riddled with factionalism and divisions. These occur due to the subordination of the general interests of the movement and the people to the narrow and subjective matters of leadership preferences. In our view these serious challenges deny the ANC the authority to exercise its political leadership to the alliance and society at large and therefore constitute a threat to the struggle and programme to pursue a second more radical phase of the revolution.
We call on the ANC national leadership to genuinely intervene in the best interest of asserting ANC as the reliable force to lead our revolution in the province or otherwise these divisions will weaken the ANC towards 2019 national elections.
We also call on the ANC to act against its members and leaders, for their participation in a march organized by the reactionary Gupta funded Black first, Land First (BLF) to Luthuli House to handover a memorandum accepted by ANC Secretary General at ANC Head-Quarters.
Removal of President Jacob Zuma
The PEC acknowledged that the removal of comrade Jacob Zuma as the head of state is not the solution to all our problems of "corporate capture of the movement and the state" but his removal will reflect the seriousness and a necessary first step meant to confront and dismantle the parasite-patronage network of looters in the country and also here in the province.
We call on the ANC NEC to close ranks and remove comrade Jacob Zuma immediately, as such a move will also paralysed the rife political opportunism of the so-called opposition parties whose relevance is based on an anti-Zuma campaign and narrative.
ISSUED BY THE SACP FREE STATE PROVINCE
Contact:
Bheke Stofile - SACP Free State Provincial Secretary
Mobile: 071 600 4899
Phillip Kganyago - SACP Free State Provincial Spokesperson
Mobile: 071 896 0157
