09 February 2001
The South African Communist Party (SACP) welcomes the President's focus on concrete measures towards the mobilisation of domestic resources for investment in key priority areas around economic infrastructure, rural development and urban renewal. We believe that the R6bn investment over the next three years is an important commitment. In particular we welcome the emergent industrial policy focus areas geared towards economic growth and development, as well as job creation. The SACP feels particularly pleased about these as we have in recent years been consistently arguing for a much more focused attention on the mobilisation of domestic resources and investment, within the framework of a coherent industrial strategy. This we believe to be the best route throu gh which to eradicate poverty in our country and attract foreign direct investment. We feel that the President's speech is a significant signal and an important start in this direction.
We are particularly pleased about the President's prioritisation of the urgency of a review of the regulatory framework of the financial sector. For us as the SACP this is an important priority area, as we continue to mobilise for the transformation of the financial sector through our Red October Campaign and other planned action. We believe that the President's call for reviewal of the regulatory framework for the financial sector should be treated as a clarion call to all components of the financial secto r, including banks, to begin to undertake a comprehensive internal examination on their role towards the mobilisation of domestic financial resources for development purposes. We are therefore even more convinced that a summit on the financial sector is ev en more urgent as an important contribution a people-driven review of the regulatory framework for the financial sector.
We also welcome the President's very clear signal on the leading role of the state in driving a growth and development strategy. For us as the SACP, and the working class as a whole, the role of the private sector should be subjected to this overall framew ork and goals of poverty eradication, where the state is the strategic driver of economic development and growth.
As the SACP we however note a number of issues and areas that will require careful focus, debate and decisive action both within and outside our Alliance. As a country we need to ensure that our macro-economic policy is constantly reviewed and assessed in order to ensure that it is in line with, and does not frustrate, the very progressive commitments and announcements on infra-structural investment, rural development and urban renewal strategies.
We will also need to ensure that any programme of restructuring of state assets is not driven and hijacked by business and free-market ideologues that will eventually frustrate the developmental and job-creating potential of parastatals and other key secto rs of our economy. The SACP is committed to advancing, consolidating and defending a developmentally-oriented, democratic public sector. Therefore the restructuring of the public sector needs to be guided by our Reconstruction and Development Programme st rategic priorities. The SACP will continue to work for the up-sizing of strategic capacity of the public sector for reconstruction and development.
We therefore need to ensure that any restructuring of state assets is fully debated by the key social partners, in line with the President's own pronouncements on the need to eradicate poverty. In the elaboration of the President's speech by the various mi nistries in the coming weeks as well as through the budget, the SACP hopes to see more focus on specific measures to stem the continuing job losses in the formal sector.
Most importantly, the President's speech is a clarion call to all our people and structures to mobilise behind these developmental initiatives, in particular around the prioritised nodal points for rural development and urban renewal. As the SACP we will energetically take up this call and we commit ourselves to direct all our stru ctures to mobilise our people behind these development initiatives, particularly ensuring strong organisational structures and people's involvement in the prioritised nodal points.
CONTACT
Mazibuko K. Jara (surname Jara)
Department of Media, Information and Publicity South African Communist Party
Tel - 011 339-3621/2
Fax - 011 339-4244
Cell - 083 651 0271
Email - sacp1@wn.apc.org