10 December 2018, Johannesburg

The Alliance Political Council met on Monday, 10 December 2018 in Johannesburg, at the Luthuli House. The meeting was attended by the National Officials of the ANC and the SACP and the National Office Bearers of COSATU and SANCO.

The purpose of the session was to assess progress on the implementation of the shared programme of the Alliance and decide on the way forward. The programme of the meeting included developing a shared understanding on the challenges facing the ANC-headed Alliance and broad democratic movement with particular focus on the material needs of our people, the majority of whom is the working class and poor. The meeting paid special attention on energy challenges, in particular the state and performance of Eskom.

The Political Council received inputs from Alliance components assessing the South African economic and political situation. The inputs included the character of the international context and its impact on our country and the global south in the context of the recently convened BRICS plus Summit of Political Parties. The rising right-wing populism is posing a serious challenge. This occurs in a world economy that has yet to fully recover from the global crisis that first broke out in the United States in 2007-2008. Racist, xenophobic, narrow nationalist, protectionist and military aggression as well as unilateralism are among the heightened elements of the international context the world and South Africans need to unite against.

On the positive note, the Political Council greeted with appreciation the recovery of the South African economy from the recent technical recession. The outcomes of the recent job and investment summit should be vigorously translated into practical action to drive an inclusive and balance economic growth. This should specifically be targeted at achieving a radical transformation of the colonial features of our economy to address the challenges of social equalities, unemployment, poverty and uneven development.

In this context the Political Council welcomed the promulgation of a legislated national minimum wage as laying the foundation for a heightened collective effort to advance the living wage and comprehensive social security campaigns. Related to this, the meeting further received a report on the implementation of the decision to review the National Development Plan as part of the preparations for the next Alliance Summit. The Alliance Task Team on the review was directed to finalise its report for consideration by the Political Council before the next Alliance Summit.

The meeting welcomed the parliamentary breakthrough towards amending the Constitution to clearly provide for land expropriation without compensation in the public interests, to correct historical injustices and redress existing imbalances. The Alliance will continue mobilising the motive forces of the National Democratic Revolution to ensure that the breakthrough is consolidated in the interests of the people as a whole, the majority of whom suffered colonial dispossession and land distribution along racial lines.

The meeting received a presentation from the Minister of Public Enterprises, Pravin Gordhan on the progress being made to address energy security challenges with a focus on Eskom. The leadership of the revolution directed government to ensure that load shedding stops. It was agreed that intervention should include an urgent establishment of a representative SOE Council and an Advisory Technical Task Team specifically to achieve a turnaround at Eskom as a matter of urgency. The Political Council resolved to convene relevant deployees to consolidate a coherent response on ensuring sustainable energy security. It was resolved that this meeting should take place before the end of December 2018.

The Political Council noted the progress emerging at Eskom to deal with the rot of state capture, other forms of corruption and underperformance. The Political Council has issued a stern warning against incompetence and directed that acts of sabotage must be dealt with. Relevant governance and state authorities should act swiftly in line with their constitutional mandate and the rule of law.

The meeting discussed the challenges facing local government, including its capacity to effectively and efficiently deliver basic services to the people. The Alliance Secretariat was tasked to convene an urgent meeting to address local government service delivery challenges.

The Political Council received and discussed presentations on the reconfiguration of the Alliance. It was agreed that the next Alliance Summit should receive a consolidated Alliance Position Paper detailing the principles of a reconfigured Alliance for consideration and implementation. The meeting reaffirmed the strategic relevance and centrality of the Alliance in moving the National Democratic Revolution onto a second more radical phase and collectively driving its successful execution. Linked to this process, the Alliance will strengthen and deepen its principled and programmatic unity in action. In the coming period, the Alliance priorities will include the following.

1. Finalise the National Health Insurance Bill for promulgation into law and vigorous implementation to end inequalities in our health system and ensure universal quality healthcare.
2. Smooth school admissions, TVET colleges and universities registrations.
3. Intensifying the campaign against gender-based discrimination, violence and child abuse. 
4. Campaign against drug dealing and substance abuse.

The success of the Alliance in the execution of all its tasks and overall historical mission rests on collective responsibility in serving the people selflessly. The ANC-headed Alliance will accordingly drive the 2019 election campaign linked with the unity and reconfiguration process to ensure a decisive victory for our people!

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