NEHAWU NATIONAL EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE STATEMENT
March 29 2012
NEHAWU held a successful National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting on the 27-28th March 2012. The NEC received a comprehensive report and discussed the union's political, international, socio-economic and organisational work against the background of the ongoing global crisis of capitalism which continues to impinge on the South African socioeconomic and political situation.
POLITICALLY
The NEC has noted with alarm the emergence and convergence of a powerful, liberal and often racist anti-majoritarian grouping in our country, in defence of the beneficiaries of apartheid wealth and privilege, who are hell-bent on frustrating and sabotaging the radical transformation of our society using the courts and other democratic institutions.
NEHAWU commits to defend the democratic Constitution of our country, with its pillars of the separation of powers, rule of law and democratic majority rule. In this regard, we will mobilise our members, work with our federation, Alliance and other democratic forces that have historically fought for our democracy and against these forces that seek to maintain the Apartheid privileges and socioeconomic inequalities.
The NEC supports the principle that says that the Constitution must serve the people and not the other way round, so if there are legitimate grounds for a constitutional review in order to better the lives of the poor, the union will support it.
NEHAWU notes with concern the pressure that is increasingly mounted upon the judiciary by the media in particular on matters involving the ANC government, ANC as an organisation or its members. This includes the ongoing attacks on members of the bench that are disfavoured or who are not prepared to compromise their independence or yield to this pressure.
The NEC denounces the unintelligent declarations by the racist duo of Pieter Mulder and Helen Zille who nonsensically claimed respectively that the descendents of colonialists legitimately own huge sections of the land that they currently occupy and that the indigenous people are refugees in their own country.
We find it very hypocritical of Helen Zille to go around overzealously shouting about the supremacy of the Constitution, while calling people refugees in their own country.
We reject the hysterical response and subjective criticism by some individuals and organisations like the FW De Klerk Foundation of the recently released ANC Policy Conference discussion documents. These capitalist apologists want to leave the liberation movement impotent with a deficient political power while economic power rests with the same class forces as under apartheid.
Given their history, it hardly comes as a surprise to us that the FW De Klerk Foundation and the rest of the anti-majoritarian forces are doing all they can to defend the unjust legacy of Apartheid and to stop transformation.
The NEC condemns the opportunistic and malicious offensive by the Democratic Alliance {DA} against the African National Congress's {ANC} president, Comrade Jacob Zuma by trying to resuscitate the corruption charges that were dismissed by the National Prosecuting Authority {NPA}.In line with the Cosatu Congress resolution we support and will defend the leadership led by Cde Jacob Zuma.
The NEC reiterated our union's commitment to defend the outcomes of the 52nd National Conference of the African National Congress {ANC} held in Polokwane and the elected leadership collective as instructed by our 2008 NEHAWU Central Executive Committee and the Cosatu Central Executive Committee.
The union will also mobilise its members to swell the ranks of the ANC as a way of implementing our federation's longstanding resolution. We also welcome the invitation by the ANC president for workers to join the ANC and its leadership structures so as to influence its policy direction.
We call on the leaders of the ANC and the Alliance to speak with one voice and the they must not allow their names to be used by opportunists who seek to divide our structures. We reiterate our call for Cosatu leaders to speak with one voice at all times. The NEC also resolved that we will support the retention of the current leadership collectives of both COSATU and the SACP respectively during their upcoming congresses.
The NEC reaffirmed its profound dedication to the ANC/SACP/COSATU tripartite alliance and we believe that this alliance has the capacity to manage whatever contradictions they might exist.
SOCIO-ECONOMIC
The NEC welcomed the announced R844.5 billion worth of infrastructure investment by the state over the next three years. However, we call on government to ensure that this and other planned infrastructure investments in the future help to break the inherited Apartheid growth path that is based on the mineral-energy-complex and Apartheid spatial landscape. Therefore, these investments must be coupled with other socioeconomic and spatially transformatory interventions, especially on land reform and socioeconomic services in the former Bantustand areas.
We warn government to guard against sharks that will be lurking in the shadows for tenders.
We welcome the release of the ANC Policy Conference discussion documents, and as a revolutionary union we will engage with them, because we believe that these documents reflect an ongoing consolidation and even an advance on the outcomes of Polokwane and the 2010 national general council which was held in Durban.
The NEC congratulates the working class for a resoundingly successful general strike, on the 7th of March, which united the broadest sections of the workers in South Africa in our fight against Labour Broking and the privatisation of public roads in the form of e-tolling.
We remain resolute in our conviction that labour brokers and the etolling system must be banned outright.
We welcome the timely announcement by the Minister of Health, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, of the 10 districts in defence of the NHI.
We call on the department to also pay attention to the other key building blocks such as infrastructure revitalisation, human resources, including the appointment of district specialists, the management of hospitals and the decentralisation of relevant powers to institutions.
We strongly welcome the ANC's dialogue on making HIV/AIDS a notifiable disease.
The NEC instructed the union to engage on the report and process towards the establishment of the two universities in Mpumalanga and Northern Cape. We are also calling for the establishment of provincial offices of the Department of Higher Education and Training {DHET} in all the provinces.
We are arguing for the use of the current delivery sites in Mpumalanga so as to free the resources and fast-track the process.
The NEC rejects the current 4% wage increase offer that is currently on the table at the PSCBC from the government, the employer of our members. We call on them to present a new realistic offer that can be seriously considered by labour and also resolve the public service housing scheme. Failure to heed this warning will have grave consequences and make real the possibility of a public service strike this year.
We call on our members to mobilise and be ready for any eventuality.
INTERNATIONAL
The NEC strongly condemns the United States' unilateral sanctions against Iran and its attempts to coerce other countries to cut imports of Iranian oil.
NEHAWU calls on our government to review its policy of sanctions against Iran and we must support that country's fight against imperialism. We express our unwavering solidarity with the people of Iran and Middle East in their pursuit of democracy and fight against imperialism.
We also welcome the fact that the ANC is hosting the Socialist International from 30th August to 1st September this year in Cape Town.
NEHAWU condemns the coup in Mali that toppled President Amadou Toumani Toure, which has been carried out by a group of bandits whose leader Captain Amadou Haya Sanogo has been trained several times in the United States. We call on the African Union to intervene timeously to stop this.
NEHAWU reaffirms our solidarity with the people of Palestine and we are calling for an end to the US backed military aggression.
Statement issued by NEHAWU NEC, March 29 2012
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