SACP STATEMENT ON THE ALLEGATION THAT CDE BLADE NZIMANDE WAS AN IFP MEMBER

 The SACP has continued to receive media quieries about an allegation that Cde Tony Yengeni accused Cde Blade Nzimande, in an NEC meeting of the ANC, that he was in his earlier years a member of the IFP (see City Press report).

 Our initial reaction was not to ever allow ourselves to degenerate into giving NEC gossip some credence.  The SACP respects the fact that Cde Blade Nzimande as a member of the NEC is unable to comment on internal discussions of the NEC.

 The SACP however, given the enquiries, has decided once and for all to respond to these allegations and wish to dismiss these allegations with the contempt that it deserves. Occasionally in the run up to major congresses of our organisations this allegation and others are thrown up with an intention to tarnish the name of the General Secretary of the SACP, Cde Blade Nzimande.  

This phenomenon is similar to how the apartheid regime sought to label our leaders in order to isolate them from the oppressed masses of our people. Cde Blade's record of struggle is there for all to see. Today, under conditions of freedom and democracy, the only way to seek to isolate the General Secretary of the SACP is to associate him with the butchers who killed our people in collaboration with the racist regime.

 In fact as the SACP we can see the hand of the same elements who worked as informers and collaborators with the apartheid regime and its murderous networks in attempting to tarnish our comrades.

The absurdity of this claim is also in its tribalistic undertones, building on Buthelezi's and the apartheid regime's claims in the 1970s and 1980s that all Zulus were members of Inkatha. It is a repeat of the same script, because Nzimande is Zulu, therefore he was Inkatha.

No shred of evidence has ever been produced to support this ludicrous claim. Every time this nonsense is repeated it is given media currency as if it was the discovery of gold.  Those who allege have no obligation to prove but Cde Blade is subjected to a public character assassination campaign wherein he must prove the contrary. This lie is being repeated and reported as if it is coming into the public domain for the first time when it is not the case. The lack of institutional memory in the media is worrying to put it mildly.

 This rumour has not only caused harm to the person of Cde Blade Nzimande and to the ANC and SACP but to his family as well. We are confident that our people know our leaders for what they are and for what they seek to represent. They will not be deterred by this character assassination campaign.

 It is also clear to the SACP that the City Press and other media are also on a fight back mode after Nzimande's role in the actions against some of the media.

Statement issued by the SACP, June 19 2012

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