Nzimande+to+SADTU,+A+call+to+action



=**A call to action, with and for workers and the poor:**=


 * Address to the North-West Provincial Congress of SADTU – 28 September 2005**

1. Introduction On behalf of the SACP we bring revolutionary greetings to this North-West provincial congress of SADTU. The current SADTU Congresses should be seen as important platforms to prepare for your 6th National Congress next year. However, such Congresses are also important platforms to assess, evaluate and chart a way forward for the current political challenges facing the working class and our country as a whole.

Therefore as the SACP we wish to focus on some of the challenges facing the working class in general, and the continuing challenges of educational transformation, as well as give you an update on progress on SACP campaigns and the role that SADTU should play. We also would like to use this platform to invite SADTU to actively participate in building a strong SACP in this province, and some of the challenges facing the SACP nationally and this province in particular.

2. The unity of SADTU and the working class as a whole Cdes who attended SADTU’s 5th Congress in Durban will recall that in our input as SACP we raised concerns about allegations that were splashed in the media in the run up to that Congress about some of your leadership. Let me quote exactly what we said then:

“Of serious concern as well is the role of some of the media, in particular the City Press… It is completely unacceptable for the City Press to simply accept and print a set of allegations sent to it by “unknown” people. Is this how the media should operate? Does this mean that any individual can anonymously write something about public figures, and then have this published by the media? The City Press needs to be careful that it does not take us down the route of gutter and dangerous journalism. If they print because they know such allegations come from “credible sources” then it means that they either know who these sources are and possibly what their intentions are or else they are willingly being used to pursue these sources’ agendas. We are neither afraid of nor against critical engagement by the media, but there are decent rules that need to be followed”.

We were raising these matters because we were convinced, and still are convinced that there are many forces out there which are hell-bent on dividing the working class, especially the progressive trade union movement. We must forever be vigilant against these and ensure maximum unity within our ranks. Unity can only really be cemented if we have concrete programmes of action to implement our resolutions.

We are pleased to hear that COSATU has investigated these allegations and have produced a report which we hope will be accepted by all. The simple reason why we are concerned about any signs of a counter-revolutionary offensive against the working class is of concern to the SACP, as we believe that the unity of the working class and all its organs is of paramount importance if we are to consolidate the national democratic revolution in favour of the workers and the poor.

3. The current political challenges and the role of the working class Your Congress is taking place in the midst of a number of critical challenges facing the working class. The recent militant struggles of the working class in the transport, mining, catering, metal and other sectors are an important indication that the working class of our country is not going to take the capitalist offensive lying down. These struggles, amongst other things, are also a reflection of workers’ dissatisfaction with the growing gap between the rich and the poor, as particularly expressed by the growing wage gap between executives and the workers. We need to intensify and deepen these struggles towards building a momentum against the capitalist system as a whole.

Your Congress is also taking place a week or so before COSATU continues with mass action for jobs and against poverty. The SACP has thrown its full weight behind this campaign, as we believe that it is only working class muscle that will transform the current economic growth path in our country which is shedding jobs, outsourcing and casualising.

A critical dimension in transforming the current growth path is that of struggling for the building of a developmental state. To us a developmental state must be a state that is in a firm alliance with, and buttressed by, organised working class muscle and generally mobilised mass of our people. It is from this standpoint that the state must seek to engage capital. Of course there is a debate about this matter in broader society and within our movement.

There is a another view that argues that a developmental state must be characterised by political leadership working closely with business (a state-capitalist class alliance), as a basis for addressing the needs of the workers and the poor. We of course disagree with this conception, as it can only lead to a trickle down, without effectively addressing the challenge of job creation and the eradication of poverty.

Therefore a critical task in creating the kind of developmental state buttressed by working class interests and muscle is the building of a strong, accountable and democratic public sector. SADTU, as a public sector union, has an important role to play in organising educators towards our goal of transforming the education system. Your struggle to create quality public education is an absolutely essential dimension in building the kind of developmental state we need. I shall however return to this matter below.

Another major political challenge facing our movement as a whole is that surrounding the treatment of former Deputy President, Cde Jacob Zuma. Let me briefly reiterate the SACP’s position on this matter. We have strongly condemned the announcement of a prima facie case against Cde Zuma, but not being charged. This led to one of the most unprecedent trial by the media, thus reinforcing the widely held perception that his is a political trial. We also condemned the manner in which raids were conducted by the Scorpions into his houses and offices, and offices of his lawyers. Some of these raids were conducted by elements of the apartheid regime’s security establishment. The High Court judgement that raids into one of Cde Zuma’s offices were illegal, underlines what we have said that this strengthens the perception that Cde Zuma will not have a fair trial.

However as the Alliance, we have endorsed the recent ANC NEC decision that both Cde President Mbeki and Cde Zuma should discuss this matter and give guidance on how best it needs to be discussed both in the ANC and the Alliance as a whole. As the SACP we are of the view that we need a frank, thorough and open debate on the matters underlying all the problems that have emerged around Cde Zuma. We are firmly of the view that the working class has a particularly important role to play in this whole affair.

4. Some of the critical educational challenges This year we are celebrating 50 years of the Freedom Charter. It is therefore necessary that SADTU, together with the democratic education movement undertake a thorough analysis of achievements and failures in educational transformation during the first decade of our democracy. Many formations have undertaken ten year reviews but the democratic education movement has not done this.

Such an assessment, in our view, needs to be undertaken as a matter of urgency, but not only for the sake of assessment. It must be an assessment whose outcome must be, amongst under things, the rebuilding of a democratic movement in education. SADTU has a particularly important role in the rebuilding of this movement so that it is able to take up day to day issues and challenges in education. SADTU must also play a role in supporting the building of a democratic organisation of the school governing bodies (the National Association of School Governing Bodies), and assist in strengthening the progressive student movement, especially SASCO and COSAS.

A key challenge that SADTU faces is that of translating its many progressive resolutions into practical campaigns and mass activities. It is of no use to have a slogan of building quality public education if not accompanied by visible campaigns on the ground.

One of the immediate priorities is that of wiping out the apartheid school backlogs in terms of infrastructure. There is no reason why we still have children learning under trees 11 years after our democratic breakthrough. For instance one would have expected that SADTU would argue and mobilise for government’s public works programmes to prioritise this issue, and focus on wiping out shortage of classrooms, as well as ensuring that every school has an access road and all basic amenities including proper sanitation, water and electricity. This in itself would help focus government’s public works programmes and create numerous job opportunities around one very importantb priority. This should be part of the struggle to build quality public education.

Since taking up the campaign on land and the conditions of farmworkers, it is clear to us that the question of rural education, especially on the farms is something that requires mobilisation. This province is predominantly rural, and still faces many problems including lack of proper transport for rural learners and the manipulation of farmschools by farmers.

As the SACP we call for the expropriation of all land on which farm schools are built, for government to take this over in order to ensure that white farmers do not close or open schools at will. The conditions of farmworkers and their families, including learners, remain shocking and a serious blight on our democracy. We therefore call upon SADTU to join the SACP-led campaign on land and agrarian transformation, and specifically taking up the issue of having proper farm schools and decent living conditions for families of farmworkers.

As part of the campaign on quality public education, it is also essential that SADTU focuses on the question of teacher development, and actively engage all stakeholders in this regard, especially government and communities.

To the SACP these are some of the concrete areas around which SADTU can lead mass campaigns and intense work amongst our people.

5. SACP campaigns The SACP in recent years has embarked on a number of very important campaigns. We appreciate the support that we have received from COSATU and its affiliates, including SADTU. We have made some progress in a number of our campaigns, including securing the establishment of Umzansi account and progressive resolutions emanating from the National Land Summit held in July this year.

However there are still many challenges and I would like to highlight only two immediate ones.

These two are:


 * Our demand for an amnesty for all those black listed on the credit bureaux


 * The need to develop an alternative model for financing low-cost housing

One of the major conclusions by Government’s Ten Year Review (GTYR) of the first decade of democracy was that as a country we have made significant progress in those areas under the control of the state.

In those areas left to the capitalist market there has been little progress. We can cite a number of areas in this regard, including low-cost housing, provision of water and electricity and provision of financial services. The GTYR was quite clear - if the current economic trajectory was left unchanged, the negatives will soon begin to overwhelm the positives.

Both this Manifesto and the Government’s Ten Year Review identified lack of micro-credit for productive purposes as well as lack of access to finance for millions of South Africans as a serious impediment to growth and development. At the last ANC national conference in Stellenbosch in 2002, one of the economic resolutions was that the Usury Act should be strengthened to protect the millions of our people being exploited by the unscrupulous legal microlenders that had mushroomed in the first 10 years of our democracy, filling the gap left by banks and financial institutions which refused to provide affordable financial services and credit to all South Africans, especially the workers and the poor.

All the above were essentially admissions by government and the ruling ANC that during the first decade of our democracy we had perhaps allowed the capitalist market to run amok, thus undermining many of the progressive social policies put in place by the democratic government.

There is no better example of this than in the area of credit in general, and the havoc caused by microlenders and credit bureaus in particular. As we have said before, 11 years into our democracy we have allowed what is essentially an apartheid credit regime to continue to wreck lives of millions of our people.

It is for these reasons that we welcomed the drafting and tabling of the National Credit Bill before parliament. However we are disturbed by the stance taken by the Department of Trade and Industry in seemingly rejecting our call for a credit amnesty for all.

We regard this matter as fundamental to government’s goal of creating work, fighting poverty and resuscitating the ‘second economy’. The credit grantors and the credit bureaus that have been a law unto themselves continue to wreck the lives of millions of our people. The credit bureaus have been notorious throughout the 5 years of our financial sector campaign for refusing to engage with us whilst continuing with their detrimental practices. They cannot be allowed to get away with this, hiding behind the need for a ‘stable credit regime’ which continues to destabilise the lives of millions of our people.

We cannot move from an old to a new credit regime without correcting all the errors of the past. Millions of our people are blacklisted for being unable to repay microlenders the exploitative interest – on average 360% interest a year - for small cash loans. As we all know - many people are forced to turn to microlenders to meet urgent needs such as paying school fees and meeting funeral expenses. We are not referring to omashonisa here – these are the so-called legal microlenders regulated by government through the DTI and the Micro Finance Regulatory Council. They can charge any rate of interest they like.

Over and above blacklisting three million people, the credit bureaus have ruined thousands of job opportunities by supplying information to prospective employers, without the consent of the job applicants, including prospective employees owning insignificant amounts of money. In addition credit bureaus were acting beyond their mandates, as they are not employment bureaus, but credit bureaus. These actions show that credit bureaus are working against the People’s Contract of creating work and eradicating poverty which is supported by the vast majority of South Africans.

We are pleased that the new law is going to correct some of these past outrages, but we cannot take old practices and listings into a new dispensation. Given what clearly looks like messy records for millions of people, and the inaccessibility of information held by the credit bureaus, the only solution is a once-off amnesty.

We intend to escalate mass action to realise this demand, and call upon SADTU to give us practical support in this regard.

The second question I want to put to you today is related to the first and also arises from our analysis of the kind of state and society we have created in the first decade of our democracy. - Is the private sector meeting our expectations in providing finance for affordable housing for workers?

We know that apart from first and foremost wanting decent jobs, one of the basic demands of our people is for housing. Apartheid ensured the housing crisis inherited by our new government. Overcrowding, no state spending on housing for workers and the poor.

The private sector, the banks and other financial institutions, did nothing to alleviate the plight of people forced to live in matchbox houses without the basic facilities for building family life and sustainable communities.

So what has changed? In a word – nothing.

Despite government’s concerted effort to house the millions of homeless and get rid of the backlog of 3 million houses, which we applaud and support, there is still little evidence that the banks are coming to the party. Despite promises of billions of rands for affordable housing made in the Financial Sector Charter, we are now in September 2005 and not a cent of the promised R42 billion has been released. Promises are very easily made, and very easily broken.

In 2003, we were approached by the government to support the withdrawal of the Community Reinvestment Bill in favour of the Financial Sector Charter. The banks convinced the government that the Charter would deliver more finance for affordable housing than the Community reinvestment law would.

Well, the proof of the pudding is in the eating, so what has happened in the two years since then?

Again, nothing. For all the talking that we have engaged in through the Charter, not one cent of the promised R42 billion has bought even one brick to build one house. And it does not look like that is going to happen any time soon.

We must be very clear. Banks thinking that they can decide whether or not to fund housing for workers and the poor is not an option they have. The only option they have is whether to do this voluntarily or be forced to do it through legislation.

We call on government to bring back the Community Reinvestment Bill so that it can be enacted through Parliament. If the banks want to still claim that the Act will give equal or better housing finance for affordable housing, they have nothing to fear. They should welcome the CRA if, as they claim, it will be less onerous on them than their voluntary promises which never materialise.

In addition we are calling for a new financing model for low-cost housing, and move away from 20 year mortgage bonds. Instead we want an affordable but shorter paying period.

We are also pleased to announce that the SACP will be launching its National Red October Campaign in this province in Brits, on 8 October 2005 under the slogan “Fight Hunger, Demand Food Security for all”. We will be having a symbolic occupation at one of the farms, starting with a night vigil on 7 October, to highlight the importance of accelerating land and agrarian transformation to fight high and secure food security for our people. We urge all SADTU members in Brits and surrounding areas to join us in this activity.

6. Building a strong SACP in the North-West Last week we met with the provincial leadership of the SACP in this province. We agreed that a lot needs to be done to strengthen the SACP in this province. We therefore call upon SADTU members to join the SACP and ensure that we indeed have a strong Party. There can be no strong SADTU without a strong SACP, and there can be no strong SACP without a strong SADTU. Our fate is the same, it is the fate of the working class and its responsibility to lead the national democratic revolution.

In short, our message to this Congress is a call to action. Let the working class mobilise its muscle, build working class power in all key sites of influence, as the only way to ensure that the NDR is deepened and for the achievement of a socialist South Africa.

With these words we wish you a successful Congress.

Blade Nzimande General Secretary