ANC YL RESPONSE TO MINISTER OF MINERALS, SUSAN SHABANGU

The ANC Youth League has noted the comments attributed to the Minister of Minerals, Susan Shabangu on the Nationalisation of Mines. Minister Shabangu is reported as having said at the International Mining Indaba that nationalisation of Mines will not happen in her lifetime. If these are really the views of the Minister, she is disingenuous, dishonest and does not understand the African National Congress. In our internal discussion with Minister Shabangu, she said that she does not disagree with the ANC Youth League, but because she is now trying to impress imperialists, she changes her tone.

The ANC is the centre of power and gives direction to government policy, not vice versa. The reason why the ANC Youth League has developed a concrete programme (see here) on the nationalisation of Mines within the ANC, not in government, is because we understand that the ANC gives policy direction to government. The ANC policy objectives are located within the Freedom Charter, which says Mineral wealth beneath the soil shall be transferred to the ownership of the people as a whole. The discussion document officially released by the ANC Youth League adequately clarifies this question and can assist the Minister to properly understand ANC policy objectives. Nationalisation of Mines will happen not in the distant future, and the Minister should, like all disciplined members of the ANC, make inputs on the nationalisation perspective.

We call on the Minister of Minerals to stop misleading investors, because these investors should also make input into the discussion document on the Nationalisation of Mines, which is going to be reality not in the distant future. The ANC YL is beginning to have doubts on the capability of Minister Shabangu to translate ANC policy objectives into practice in the Ministry of Minerals. The ANC has requested the ANC Youth League to write a detailed, coherent and concrete perspective on the nationalisation of Mines, and we have done that, yet a Minister chose to jump the gun and make false assurances to investors and role players in Mining. As disciplined members of the ANC, we will raise this concern with the leadership of the ANC.

Statement issued by the ANC Youth League, February 2 2010

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