SACP Western Cape holds unifying provincial congress

10 December 2003

66 delegates representing 1,875 SACP members from 34 branches in the Province
met to look at the organisational challenges facing the Party in the Western
Cape and elect a new leadership to take the SACP into the next three years.

The 4th Provincial Congress of the SACP marked a new departure in that all
the five office bearers received overwhelming support thus making elections
for these positions unnecessary. In addition the gender representation of women
on the Provincial Executive has increased by over 100% to 5 on the 20 person
Executive following the elections.

The Congress was held as part of the rebuilding programme of the Province,
in order to put in place an effective SACP that will deliver on the 2004 programme
as well as putting the organisation machinery in place for the implementation
of the SACP Mid-Term Vision.

Congress was addressed by the General Secretary of the SACP, Comrade Blade
Nzimande. In his address he called on the Provincial Congress to implement the
Mid-Term vision of the SACP, a 10 year plan whose objective is to ensure that
the working class have a decisive and qualitative impact upon all key sites
of political and economic power, so that no center of power in society can be
able to exercise power without taking into account the class interests of the
working class.

Congress was presented with the 6 pillars of the 2004 programme of the SACP
for implementation by the Province. The General Secretary called upon the Province
to:-

• Build working class power towards an overwhelming ANC victory in the Western
  Cape;
• Building working class power for sustainable livelihoods both at work and
  where the working class live;
• Combating the HIV/AIDS pandemic;
• Building the Alliance from below;
• International solidarity;

Emphasis at Congress was laid on the need to take forward the Financial Sector
campaign and the transformation of this sector in the Western Cape.

The relationship between the SACP and the COSATU 2015 programme was outlined,
and the need for both organisations to work closely together on these respective
programmes.

With regards the 2004 elections in the Province, the key focus of the SACP
will be on mobilising both the organised workers and the vulnerable sector workers
to vote for the ANC.

Congress was also addressed by the Provincial Chairperson of the ANC, Comrade
Ebrahim Rasool who spoke on the outcome of the Provincial Growth & Development
Summit (PGDS), the need to systematically strengthen the Alliance in the Province
and issues of governance in the Western Cape.

The Cosatu Regional Secretary Comrade Tony Ehrenreich speaking on behalf of
280,000 membership of Cosatu in the Western Cape, called for the SACP to actively
engage itself in the Provincial NEDLAC structure that is being set up to discuss
matters that flow out of the PGDS, and for the SACP to engage vigorously the
shaping of economic policy in the Province. He also called on the SACP to involve
itself in the future restructuring of Public Transport in the Province specifically
on the future of Golden Arrow.

The Congress was conducted in a positive spirit and delegates under took to
arrange a policy conference in 2004 to deal with some of the strategic issues
that face the SACP in the Province.

The newly elected Provincial leadership is as follows:-

Provincial Secretary	Khaya Magaxa
Provincial Chairperson	Gwebs Qonde
Provincial Deputy Secretary	Mark Sweet
Deputy Provincial Chairperson	Connie September
Provincial Treasurer	Wendy Koza

Additional members to the Provincial Executive are:-

• Fred Gona
• Michael Makwayiba
• Karl Cloete
• Phumla Tause
• Khaya Hamana
• Nicholas Maziya
• Ntsiki Nyakatya
• Don Pasquale
• Lulama Mvimbi
• Moshoeshoe Mvalo
• Keith Jacobs
• Glenda Kruss
• Derrick Engelbrecht
• Vivid Mgoqi
• Leonard Ramatlakane