SACP response to DA led coalition counter-memorandum delivered to the ANC led Alliance march on the 20 March 2009

The South African Communist would like to place on record that it is not going to be bullied and told by Helen Zille what it must say and not to say, as her counter-memorandum (see here) contains language symptomatic of the language that was used to suppress communism through the introduction of The Suppression of Communism Act, No. 44 of 1950. In 2005 the SACP launched "Know Your Neighbourhood Campaign", in this campaign we focussed on "Basic Services For All", highlighting amongst others: "Free electricity For ALL", "Free Water and Sanitation For All" etc, and centrally to this campaign was the door to door work that we undertaken as the SACP, listening to issues of service delivery facing our communities.

This is the context through which the DA led coalition in the City of Cape Town should understand our campaign (see here), our campaign did not start on the 20^th of March when we delivered our Service Delivery Memorandum to the City of Cape Town, it is a culmination of series of interactions with communities in the City of Cape Town, and across the province.

The South African Communist Party vehemently condemns the spoilt attitude and cynical behaviour of the Democratic Alliance led coalition, which is a brainchild of the apartheid tricameral system, a system that undermined for many years issues of the working class and the poor, especially Coloureds and Africans in the City of Cape Town. The fact that Helen Zille decided to take an election tour to Gauteng, whilst she was informed many weeks in advance about the march, shows that she does not have interests of the working class and the poor at heart, indeed if the march was organised by the business people who are mainly white males, she would have postponed everything even within a 24 hour notice to attend to this section of our community. DA's led City of Cape Town's mediocre response, contained in its counter-memorandum, addressed to the ANC led alliance march, is nothing else but an evasive attitude in addressing concrete service delivery issues affecting the poor and the working class within the City of Cape Town.

Since out launch of "Know Your Neighbourhood Campaign" we have  discovered, amongst others that in Coloureds and African Communities: 2 085 people are using chemical toilets; 26 108 people using bucket system; 83 621 people are living in informal dwelling; 55 683 people are living in shacks in backyard; 168 778 people have no access to piped water inside the dwelling, these are the issues that we are expecting response from the DA lead City of Cape Town, nothing short of this, not a memorandum, seeking to silence the SACP, 15 years to our democratic breakthrough.

Furthermore in the geographical areas of:

Chris Nissen Park - more than 80% of households are with no access to electricity for lightning, no flush or chemical toilets, no portable water on site or in dwelling and no refuse removal by local authority weekly or less;

Imizamo Yethu - more than 40% of households are with no access to electricity for lightning, more than 30% households have no flush or chemical toilets and more than 50% households have no portable water on site or in dwelling; in Manenberg more than 4% of households have no flush or chemical toilets, more than 8% have no portable water on site or in dwelling etc;

Philippi East - more than 30% of households are with no access to electricity for lightning, more than 25% households have no flush or chemical toilets, more than 30% of the households have no portable water on site or in dwelling and more than 15% of the households with no refuse removal by local authority weekly or less.

Some of the information contained in our Service Delivery Memorandum is also available for public consumption, is not a manufactured statistics, as it is part of Community Survey that was conducted by Stats SA, across the country. We are prepared to tour with the Mayor in these areas, so that she can be exposed to first hand information on issues of service delivery.

The DA led coalition in the City of Cape Town clearly has proved that it's a coalition between the elite, which increasingly represents the most backward racist and class elements fostered and created by the  apartheid order, hence Hellen Zille decided to attend an electioneering tour outside the City of Cape on the day the memorandum was delivered in Civic Centre. It is a coalition that has less to do with the interests of the overwhelming majority of the City of Cape Town, but more concerned with the interests of elite and sections of a white petty bourgeoisie (in the DA) that is scared of losing its class privileges accumulated under apartheid.

Statement issued Khaya Magaxa SACP Western Cape provincial secretary, March 23 2009

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