EFF STATEMENT ON COALITION FOR LOCAL GOVERNMENT 

No Coalition with Parties. Coalition with the People 

17 August, 2016

Following the outcomes of the Local Government Elections, which resulted in 27 hung Councils, including four Metros, the EFF was approached by many political parties with coalition proposals. Accordingly, the EFF was approached by the ANC leadership in Gauteng namely, the Gauteng ANC Provincial Chairperson Paul Mashatile, Secretary, Hope Papo and Gauteng Premier   David Makhura who proposed talks on coalition. The EFF leadership informed them that we are willing to discuss coalitions, but only with their national leadership. 

This resulted in a second meeting with the ANC, now represented by the ANC Secretary General, Gwede Mantashe who asked for a structured and formal discussion with the EFF on coalition. The EFF leadership agreed and subsequently, the EFF leadership met the ANC delegation three times. The ANC was represented by three members of the ANC Officials, namely Gwede Mantashe, Jessie Duarte and Zweli Mkhize. They were accompanied by two ANC NEC members, namely Jeff Radebe and Ayanda Dlodlo, in addition was what they referred us to as their legal adviser; Andries Nelson

The ANC proposal was that the EFF and the ANC should form a coalition government in the four hung metro councils; Johannesburg, Tshwane, Ekurhuleni and Nelson Mandela. This, in the view of the ANC would mean the EFF and ANC could co-govern with the ANC as the leading party. The ANC went further to say, in exchange the EFF would be given the ANC votes to govern in municipal councils like Rustenburg. 

The EFF delegation, represented by the CIC Julius Malema, Deputy President, Floyd Shivambu, SG Godrich Gardee, DSG Hlengiwe Hlophe, National Chair Dali Mpofu and National Spokesperson, Mbuyiseni Ndlozi indicated to the ANC that the EFF was not interested in co-governing with the ANC anywhere. Instead we were willing to vote for them to regain control of any councils under the following conditions:

That the ANC accepts the EFF’s 6% offer in parliament for an amendment of Section 25 of the Constitution for Expropriation of Land without compensation

1. That there be nationalisation of mines, banks and other strategic industries

2. That there be Free Education until the attainment of the first degree

3. That Die Stem must be taken out of the National Anthem

4. That there be eradication of the eTolls 

5. That there be a commitment not to have a Nuclear Deal with Russia 

6. That there be a Judicial Enquiry into the Guptas 

7. That there be: President Zuma must resign as President of the Republic of South Africa 

The ANC delegation requested space for consultation on all these conditions. A second meeting was arranged at their request and in it, the ANC made a commitment that on all policy questions it was willing to be persuaded except on the resignation of Zuma. The EFF leadership explained that above all issues, the elections outcome is a public rejection of Jacob Zuma. The ANC leadership, without making any commitment on any of the conditions, requested space once more for a consultation with its National Executive Committee. A final meeting was arranged after their NEC. In this final meeting, the ANC had not shifted on any question; all matters of policy were seen as things that we could collectively work on, but they could not commit themselves on anything.

Their position was that we subject the idea of free quality education to the existing commission on higher educate. They agreed on expropriation of land, but not without compensation. They denied that there is any nuclear deal, despite our efforts to demonstrate that there was even fiscal statements to that effect. They refused exclusive enquiry on the Guptas, claiming that an enquiry should be on state capture. We tried to indicate that an investigation on state capture might have to start with Jan Van Riebeeck or investigate why Nelson Mandela stayed in Clive Menell’s home during negotiations for a democratic South Africa, thus it was too broad and bound to fail.

They could not commit on the removal of eTolls, arguing only that they will re-look into them. They also could not agree on nationalisation of banks, mines and other strategic industries. They committed that they could look into the National Anthem, but that it had to be a process of public consultation. Meaning they still could not say they support the call for Die Stem to fall. Thus, the talks were discontinued because all the ANC could tell us was an endless list of what they are willing to look into, but without any binding commitment.

The EFF leadership was also approached by the Democratic Alliance with a proposal for a coalition government. The DA delegation was led by DA leader Mmusi Maimane, James Self, Patricia De Lille, Athol Trollip, Thomas Walters, and Patricia Kopane. The DA’s proposal was also for co-governance or exchange of votes where EFF would control some municipalities when the DA controls others. As with the ANC, the EFF delegation informed the DA that we were not interested in co-governing with the DA anywhere. In stead, the EFF could vote for the DA to take control of any councils of their choice, but under the following conditions: 

1. That DA must support the EFF campaign in parliament for constitutional amendment on expropriation of land without compensation 

2. That DA must support EFF campaign in parliament for nationalisation of mines, banks and other strategic industries

3. That DA must support EFF camping in parliament for Die Stem to be removed from the National Anthem

4. That DA must commit to total renaming of Pretoria to Tshwane

Over three formal meetings with the DA, they were not accepting on the question of land and nationalisation. They were also willing to concede on free education, the national anthem and the name of Tshwane, but if these were decided through a public consultation. This means they were not prepared to agree outrightly on these matters. 

The Local Government Elections outcome presented the EFF with three options, one is to form a coalition, which means EFF takes part in governing municipalities; two, is abstain from voting, three; is to re-run municipal elections. We have taken a decision not to co-govern with any political party, we have also refused to be neutral or abstain. Our decision is to continue with an opposition voting bloc that flows from our work in parliament. This means we will form a voting bloc with opposition parties in all councils to oppose and vote out the ANC. 

We gave the ANC a chance to dispense with institutionalised corruption by recalling Zuma. The ANC now knows that Zuma broke the constitution because there is an objective judgment from the Constitutional Court. The ANC also knows that our people rejected it in Gauteng due to Zuma, the corruption in Nkandla and with the Guptas. Yet they still choose Zuma over keeping the Metros and other councils that they have lost.

We are unable to entrust any program of change on a kleptocratic organisation that protects and promotes corruption. Even if the ANC were willing to change the constitution for expropriation of land without compensation, the reality is that with Zuma on top, land would be expropriated for nepotistic reasons as we see it done in other parts of the world where there are corrupt governments.

Nationalisation of mines and banks would only benefit corrupt leaders because they would use all these institutions to benefit their friends and relatives as they do with existing institutions. The ANC has not only refused to accept these policy positions, it has also chosen Zuma over keeping the metros of Johannesburg, Nelson Mandela, Tshwane and Ekurhuleni. Zuma represents ANC’s arrogant reaffirmation that leaders who steal public funds will never be held accountable; we cannot be associated with that.

It is on this basis that the EFF will allow the 2016 Local Government Elections Municipality Councils to be constituted, and also allow Mayors, Speakers and Members of the Mayoral Committees to be elected in order to address service delivery commitments and promises that were made by various political parties during the elections campaign. In the election of Mayors, Speakers, and MMCs, the EFF will support all opposition parties other than the ruling party. 

All EFF Councillors are given an official mandate to vote with opposition political parties to constitute the Executive, in order to commence a process that will completely remove the ruling African National Congress from government. Voting against the ruling party, the ANC, does not whatsoever entail that the EFF is entering into coalition agreement or co-government with any political organisation in any Municipality. The EFF accepts the fact that our organisation did not win elections, and cannot therefore seek to be in government through backdoor arrangements. The EFF will therefore remain an opposition party in all the Municipalities where we are represented and will fight for the interests of the people from the ground.

What the EFF decision entails is that our votes in various Metro- and Local Municipalities will lead to Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP), Democratic Alliance and other service delivery formations led Municipalities. This does not mean that the EFF has been collapsed into these political parties, neither does it mean that we support their policy and ideological orientations. The EFF will use every opportunity to oppose the IFP and the DA, and will present alternate methods of governance and pro poor budgets in these Municipalities. 

The DA remains a white supremacist organisation that seeks to preserve white privilege, but a significant portion of the voters have voted for it. An accusation that the EFF is reinforcing white supremacy by simply allowing DA led municipalities to emerge is disingenuous because the alternative is the ANC and the ANC has itself maintained, protected and advanced white privilege for the past 22 years of its rule.

White privilege and supremacy are the common denominator in both the Western Cape led DA and the rest of the ANC led South Africa. Moreover, by merely taking 4 metros from the ANC does not mean the ANC is no longer in charge in South Africa as a whole, including in 8 provinces. The ANC is still responsible for the maintenance of far much bigger white interests at a national and provincial level, including through its foreign policy practices in the African continent and the world.

It is the ANC government that massacred black workers in Marikana. It is the ANC government that voted for the brutal murder of the Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi by Western Imperialist forces.

The difference between the DA and the ANC is kleptocracy (institutionalised corruption) and “the arrogance of power” on the part of the ANC; the impunity with which the ANC elite embezzles public funds and renders state institutions useless. The reality is that an average of 40% of voters in all Metro Municipalities have chosen to be governed by the DA. The IFP is also not a real alternative to the people of South Africa in that it will not resolve the legacy of colonialism, but we must all respect that the people have voted for the IFP in some Municipalities. The will of the people must be respected.

EFF Councillors will present in each Municipality their list of demands for services that must be delivered to the people on a constant basis and if there is no cooperation from those running these Municipalities, the EFF will never support their annual budgets, which need 51% of Councillors to approve. The EFF will also use its portion of the vote to remove Mayors, Speakers and MMCs who are incompetent, corrupt, and have no respect for our people.

The approach the EFF takes on coalition is called #CoalitionWithThePeople. It is an approach against corruption, incompetence, directionless-ness, crass materialism, kleptocracy, and mediocrity of the ruling party. The EFF has decided to form a COALITION WITH THE PEOPLE on the ground and not with any political party. This means the EFF will co-govern with no one, we will remain opposition in all councils. Our participation in and support for budgets will solely be underpinned by the need to benefit ordinary people, in particular the poor.

The Demands of the EFF will reflect all the issues that are contained in the 2016 EFF Local Government Elections Manifesto. What this means is that each and every Municipality where the EFF exists must prioritise the following key aspects;

ENSURE THAT THE Municipality passes by-laws which will EXPROPRIATE AND ALLOCATE LAND equitably to all residents of the Municipality for residential, recreational, industrial, religious, and agricultural purposes and activities with the principle to use it or lose it.

CREATION OF JOBS AND PROVISION OF QUALITY SERVICES TO ALL. 

INSOURCE ALL WORKERS that perform Municipality work and functions and this includes;

Security Guards

Cleaners. 

Refuse Removal Workers.

Drivers.

All General workers. 

ABOLISH ALL FORMS OF INFORMAL SETTLEMENTS AND DWELLINGS, AND PROVIDE ADEQUATE HUMAN SETTLEMENTS FOR ALL.

PROVIDE FREE ELECTRICITY AND WATER TO THE POOR (INDIGENTS), AND ALL INDIGENT RECIPIENTS OF OLD AGE GRANTS.

ENSURE that each and EVERY HOUSEHOLD UNDER ITS MUNICIPALITY HAS A FLUSHING TOILET, which will be connected to the Municipality sewage system and/or to clean, safe, and durable septic tanks.

Put to an END TO CADRE DEPLOYMENT PRACTICES AND POLICIES in all Municipalities, and employ all on the basis of their qualifications and suitability for the job and not on the basis of which political party they belong.

SUPPORT ALL STREET TRADERS THROUGH PROVISION OF INFRASTRUCTURE, TRAINING AND ACCESS TO MARKETS.   

Opening of many Municipality Services and Operational Centres which will provide for basic municipal services such as payment of rates, electricity, reporting of water leakages, and assistance with other basic needs.

ABOLISHMENT THE USAGE OF CONSULTANTS AND TENDERS in the performance of basic functions of the Municipality.

SERVICES AND OPERATIONAL CENTRES WILL BE OPEN 6 DAYS PER WEEK in order to allow full-time workers to attend to municipal services needs during weekends.

DESTROY ALL APARTHEID SYMBOLS AND STATUES and RENAME ALL APARTHEID STREET NAMES, in the course of decolonising South Africa’s public spaces. 

Ensure that COUNCILLORS RESIDE WHERE THEY ARE ELECTED and must implement an open door policy where members of the community can visit them from time to time.

ALLOCATE STANDS TO PEOPLE FOR FREE through an open and transparent mechanism.

ESTABLISH AND REVITALISE INDUSTRIAL PARKS and make them available to industrialists for the production of various goods and services.

BUILD SPACIOUS QUALITY HOUSES AND ALL THESE HOUSES WILL HAVE DIVIDED ROOMS, KITCHEN SPACE, SITTING ROOM, AND A MINIMUM OF TWO BEDROOMS.

ENSURE THAT EACH AND EVERY WARD HAS A SAFE, CLEAN AND WELL-RESOURCED EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT CENTRE (CRECHE) WHICH LOOKS AFTER CHILDREN AND PREPARES THEM FOR PRIMARY EDUCATION.

ENSURE THAT THERE IS 100% ELECTRIFICATION OF EVERY HOUSEHOLD IN THE MUNICIPALITY WITHIN THE 5 YEARS OF BEING GOVERNMENT. 

ENSURE that EVERY HOUSEHOLD HAS WATER DIRECTLY IN THE HOUSES THROUGH PIPED WATER AND BOREHOLES, WITH THE AIM OF ENSURING THAT EVERY HOUSEHOLD HAS PIPED WATER IN THEIR OWN HOUSE OR HOME. 

ESTABLISH AND MAINTAIN FUNCTIONAL COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTRES OR CLINICS IN EACH AND EVERY WARD.

ALL EXISTING CLINICS MUST OPERATE 24 HOURS, SEVEN DAYS A WEEK

PROVIDE FREE SANITARY TOWELS TO THE POOR 

USE LABOUR ABSORPTIVE METHODS OF ROAD CONSTRUCTION AND MAINTENANCE AND ENSURE THAT ALL ROADS IN THE MUNICIPALITY ARE IN GOOD CONDITIONS AT ALL TIMES.

CONSTRUCT AND MAINTAIN PUBLIC LIBRARIES, COMPUTER LABS AND LABORATORIES WITH ACCESS TO FREE WI-FI guaranteed for all residents of the Municipality.

ENSURE THAT ARTS AND CULTURE FACILITIES SUCH AS STUDIOS, CULTURAL CENTRES, SPORTING FACILITIES ETC. WILL BE DEVELOPED AND MADE ACCESSIBLE TO THE PEOPLE.

The EFF will EMPLOY AND SUSTAIN ALL MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY SAFETY WORKERS AND ENSURE THAT THEY HAVE ADEQUATE CAPACITY TO STOP ALL FORMS OF CRIME IN THE MUNICIPALITY.

The EFF could have easily used its deciding portion of the vote in the hung Municipalities to demand positions in Municipality Councils as Mayors, Speakers and Members of Mayoral Committees, but we have chosen to use the EFF’s deciding majority to make demands for ordinary people on the ground.

These demands are in keeping with the 7 cardinal pillars for economic freedom in our lifetime. The EFF will prioritise these demands in all the Municipality Councils where we exist as opposition party and will not vote for any budget that does not reflect these demands. 

EFF Metro and Local Municipality Councillors will on an annual basis publish the list of demands they are making in the Municipality of their concern and only support budgets that reflect their demands. 

Furthermore, we will call for a qualifications audit in all positions to uproot the consequences of “cadreship deployment” that relied on nepotism and not merit. All general workers must be protected, however, political appointees that benefited solely on the basis of political connections and not merit must be reviewed. 

We are solidifying the rejection of the ruling ANC, because for 22 years, the ANC has dismally failed to improve the lives of our people. The ANC’s survival thus far is parasitically linked to government resources and patronage. Thus, we have taken a decision to disconnect the ANC from its main supplier of patronage and cause of corruption which is government. The ANC without Government control will die a natural death.  This will present an opportunity for South Africans in 2019 to vote for political parties on the basis of their policies and conviction and not on the basis of patronage and ill-gotten resources.

The EFF is convinced that this is the most correct revolutionary decision, taken to prioritise the people on the ground and not aspirations of politicians. Those in the EFF who seek positions must work harder to be elected as Mayors, Speakers and Members of Mayoral Committees and must not rely on elite arrangements in order to be government. The people of South Africa have given us a mandate, and are gradually growing our movement into a future government and leader of society. We therefore are not in a hurry to take over governments even when we do not enjoy the decisive majority of the vote. 

We have also received a plethora of letters from people who say their not making it in the EFF PR Lists means that there has been misrepresentation. Many of these individuals see the current situation of electoral indecision as opportunity to occupy positions in government, yet they never worked hard. The EFF approach of #CoalitionWithThePeople will further help us to deal with this opportunism and the phenomenon of “uncontrollable ambition for power” that is rearing its ugly head within our ranks. All disciplined Ground Forces and Fighters are called upon to exercise revolutionary patience and isolate opportunism at all times.

We therefore call on all our Councillors to go and vote in the election of Mayors, Speakers and Members of Mayoral Committees. All these votes must support all political parties other than the ANC, the ANC must be rejected in all the Municipalities. No Councillor of the EFF must accept any Executive position in the Council and no member shall be a Speaker in any Council. Any EFF Councillor who acts outside the mandate of the EFF will be acted upon decisively in terms of the Code of Revolutionary Discipline as approved by the 1st National People’s Assembly. 

Let the long morning of #CoalitionWithThePeople begin. Let the EFF presence in councils everywhere increase the voice of the working class and the poor; until our people give us a majority in 2019. 

Issued by the Economic Freedom Fighters, 17 August 2016