28 January 2016
The Provincial Executive Committee (PEC) of the South African Communist Party (SACP) in the province of Moses Mabhida, Kwa-Zulu Natal held a special meeting on the 27 January 2016. The meeting was called after an unfortunate incident in Inchanga which left two people dead and three injured. This special meeting was followed by the visitation of the General Secretary, Cde Blade Nzimande, to the scene of the incident and the families of the deceased and the victims.
The PEC discussed progress on the nomination process for the forthcoming local government elections in the province. There is a power struggle around the candidates nomination process. This has now become a norm for leadership elections in the ANC throughout all its structures in the province.
The SACP PEC strongly believes that these attacks at the SACP meetings were a culmination of a plot orchestrated long time ago, to embarrass the SACP and its Chairperson, Comrade James Nxumalo.
The PEC condemned the shooting incident, which was reminiscent of the apartheid style attacks on innocent communities and was reminded of the days of the IFP-UDF clashes.
The PEC is disappointed by the lack of action to address the grievances of the people in Inchanga despite the incident being widely publicised in media. The violence in Inchanga is a result of a well-planned marginalisation of communists and their meaningful participation in our ANC-led electoral platform.
The PEC calls for calm and restrain from the people of Inchanga and asks all its members not to allow to be provoked by this incident or any similar incident that may happen elsewhere.
The SACP is a peaceful organisation and will strive to uphold it indefinitely. We call upon all alliance partners to stop criminals from hijacking our structures. Let our structures belong to the people, not the criminals and commercial racketeers.
The PEC will approach the leadership of the ANC to discuss how best they can prevent similar incidents from happening.
The PEC has been asked to meet the Provincial Commissioner of the Police to appoint a special team to investigate the Inchanga incident.
The SACP is convinced that the incident of Inchanga may warrant a Commission to investigate the incident, hence also a decision to request an audience with the Premier of the Province.
LOCAL GOVERNMENT ELECTIONS
The PEC reflected on the forthcoming Local Government Elections with emphasis on the candidate nomination process. The SACP is deeply disappointed by and depressed at the state of the nomination process in the Province. KwaZulu-Natal appears to be lagging far behind other Provinces in the process. There is a high number of reported cases of violation of ANC Constitution and the guidelines.
Serious cases of isolation of the Communist Party and other alliance partners are being reported from the branches up higher structures. The participation of other alliance structures is being made to be a farce. The SACP is taking these reports very seriously, and believes that a very strong political intervention is needed.
The SACP wants an overwhelming ANC victory, but this cannot be realised if we allow in-fighting and marginalization of each other to take root within the alliance.
The SACP strongly believes that the nomination process must also be community centred and we will ensure that all of us do heed to the ANC NEC`s in the January 8th statement delivered by President Jacob Zuma, of the importance of community involvement in the candidates nomination. We are not going to be apologetic for demanding that our communities must be at the centre of the process.
The PEC is now highly convinced that without national intervention the process is going to be hijacked. The PEC therefore decided to suspend its participation in the candidate nomination process structures with immediate effect, pending national intervention. The PEC will immediately write to ANC provincial leadership and the national leadership of the alliance to communicate this decision.
We strongly call upon the ANC provincial leadership and the ANC and alliance national leadership to respond and act swiftly to correct this unfortunate state of affairs.
The PEC remains committed on our Party`s support for overwhelming ANC victory in the forthcoming local government elections, and will strongly campaign to that end. We call upon communists to fight relentlessly for adherence to democratic principles in all structures where they participate including the interest of the working class. That is our emphasis going forward.
There is no amount of repression, intimidation, killings and marginalisation that will deter us from fighting for justice, fairness and democracy in all spheres of our lives.
SOCIALISM IS THE FUTURE!!! BUILD IT NOW!!!!
For more information please contact:
Provincial Secretary-Themba Mthembu @ 083303 6988