13 August 2000
The Central Committee (CC) of the South African Communist Party (SACP) met over the last weekend. In its meeting, the CC received extensive reports and considered the following issues:
In this statement, we focus on local government elections, the policy framework on restructuring of state assets and the labour law review process.
Local Government Elections
The Central Committee received an extensive report on the SACP approach to the forthcoming local government elections. In particular, the CC used the opportunity to discuss the issues, which the SACP would like to see within the ANC local government electi ons campaign and how, as a Party, we will contribute to the elaboration of the ANC manifesto.
Among issues the SACP will hope to see in this manifesto is a commitment to decommodify basic services, such as water, electricity, and sanitation, including the supply of life-line services and progressive block tariffs.
The SACP sees local government as a key component in the struggle to defend and extend a democratic public sector. The SACP will continue to support the public sector as the preferred service provider, and we continue to endorse municipal service partnersh ips if they take place in terms of the framework for restructuring municipal service provision.
The SACP also believes that strong ward committees and other popular assemblies and forums need to develop as a crucial component for strengthening popular participation and increasing the accountability of public representatives.
Labour Law Review
The CC expressed great concern about the current situation around the Labour Law Review Process. The SACP believes that what is missing in the intra-alliance and the broader public debate is a sense of an overall framework within which the labour law revie w process is happening. Any such review must be conducted within a shared strategic framework on growth, development and job creation. Key within any such a strategic framework needs to be a coherent and detailed industrial policy that has the broad suppor t of the alliance and indeed of key role-players in the economy. Labour law amendments, if any are required, need to be made within such a strategic framework.
The SACP reaffirms the commitment to the need to defend and consolidate a basic floor of worker rights. The SACP also reaffirms its commitment to the goal of a 40-hour working week.
The SACP CC believes that there is no rush to steamroller the proposed amendments through NEDLAC at this point. This will create a climate within which the potential for an overarching strategic economic development will be seriously set back.
Policy Framework on the Restructuring of State Assets
On 10 August, the Minister of Public Enterprises released the Policy Framework: An Accelerated Agenda Towards the Restructuring of State Owned Enterprises.
The SACP welcomes the development of a comprehensive policy framework on restructuring state assets. This framework is required to establish a common understanding and perspective to be followed by all state assets. The framework is solid basis for engagem ent during the restructuring of state assets.
The SACP acknowledges the exemplary way in which the Minister conducted a comprehensive consultative process in finalising the policy framework.
The SACP also welcomes the commitment of the framework to the following core principles:
The SACP regards these principles as part of our objective to build a national democratic developmental state, which intervenes in the economy in favour of poor and working people.
For the SACP, restructuring is not equal to wholesale privatisation and job losses, but about re-orientation to meet our social goals and strengthening the public sector. The SACP opposes privatisation which mortgages our country and assets to the profit-m aximising logic of private capital. The state cannot just privatise for the sake of raising money without looking into the strategic role played by each asset in economic development and transformation. The SACP argues for an approach which is based on lin king our economic growth and industrial strategies to our developmental and transformation objectives.
The SACP rejects any arguments that emphasise private sector dominated competition and market incentives in the economy at the expense of social development, job creation and the extension of the public sector. The SACP also rejects job losses brought abou t by restructuring without alternative employment creation and other forms of collective economic ownership. Unless there are concrete and sustainable proposals on social plans, the restructuring of state assets will be seen as privatisation and job losses , which in turn will contribute to increasing unemployment and poverty.
In the coming weeks, the SACP will engage with its alliance partners and government to achieve the following:
CONTACT
Mazibuko K. Jara (surname Jara)
Department of Media, Information Publicity South African Communist Party
Tel: (011) 339-3621/2
Fax: (011) 339-4244
Cell: 083 651 0271
Email: sacp1@wn.apc.org