Message at the ANC 108th founding anniversary rally
11 January 2020
The SACP congratulates the ANC on the milestone of its 108th anniversary. The ANC played a leading role in our liberation struggle; the struggle for democracy, social emancipation and a better life for all; and in the reconstruction and development of our country.
We are an ally of the ANC. We shall continue to be so for as long as the ANC’s primary objective is that of transforming and improving the socio-economic conditions of the working class and eliminating poverty.
The SACP reaffirms its commitment to our strategic Alliance. We pledge to continue working together as an Alliance in pursuit of our shared project of unity, renewal, reconfiguration and rebuilding our movement. Our shared strategy of struggle, societal transformation and development – the national democratic revolution – requires a united Alliance and broader revolutionary democratic movement.
We must defend and deepen the gains we have made since defeating the apartheid regime. Led by the ANC in government, we have massively expanded access to housing, electrification, clean drinking water, education at all levels and health care, including HIV treatment. In order to mitigate the impact of poverty, we have expanded access to social grants to millions of our people, the poor in particular.
However, we still face a number of challenges. Key among these is the malady of factionalism, gate-keeping, corporate-capture and other forms of corruption, mismanagement and bad governance. Let all ANC branches be open to all who accept its aims and objectives and want to join, as the ANC is a people’s movement!
In order to succeed, we must unite and uproot factionalism altogether with its material basis, and in our entire movement. We must deal a decisive blow to corporate-capture of the structures of our movement and the state. The crippling of our public entities and looting must not go unpunished. Those who were involved or complicit in these acts of counterrevolution must be prosecuted.
Our revolution and organisations are not for sale!
Our people, on whose behalf we stand here today, yearn for a better life. We want all state-owned enterprises to be turned around to serve the people and support our national development imperatives effectively. We need a radical change to our economy to meet the needs of our people, rather than a tiny minority.
This year we want the legislation to make categorical expropriation of land without compensation to be passed. We want pension and provident funds to be invested to build the manufacturing base of our country to create decent work and radically reduce unemployment, rather than fund projects that serve the private interests of a few. Yes we want prescribed assets! We also want a sovereign wealth fund to increase public investment in economic and social infrastructure and developmental purposes.
We want the introduction of the National Health Insurance (NHI) to be implemented this year. The Alliance must unite to advance and defend the interests of our people and defeat all those forces opposed to the NHI. We are against the use of illness in society as a basis for profit-making. We believe that quality health care must be accessible to all in our society, irrespective of one’s social standing and location.
The SACP calls for the intensification of the struggle against gender-based violence. We are calling for tougher laws and sentences for perpetrators of violence against women. We are calling for unity in action to end the scourge.
We have just come out of our Special National Congress with a clarion call that a good communist is active in the daily struggles of the working class and the poor, in community struggles, and indeed in the ANC!
We are looking forward to many more revolutionary years for the ANC.
Amandla!
Issued by Alex Mohubetswane Mashilo, Central Committee Member and Spokesperson, 11 January 2020
