Comrades, Tom had raised a matter of NEHAWU's leadership in Tshwane failure to support their branch. This leadership was elected in 2006. Among the challenges that were raised were: poor support to branches in regard to political management of the branches, case management, poor coordination of programs, lack of communication, lack of consultation in all aspects including conditions of service and salary increment negotiations in the bargaining council, departmental bargaining chamber negotiations and so forth.
We took strong resolutions then, but things have not changed. I didn't want to respond the first time this matter was raised. Tom will attest that they don't have bargain council for the State Owned Enterprise (SOE) sector. In this sector, you get comrades at management position who at a certain stage led NEHAWU or in the Tripartite Alliance and when they reach the workplace, they behave like Mangosuthu Buthelezi and Bantubonke Holomisa. They don't support worker's struggle. This tendency is not only been experienced in the SOE but generally in the public service. I was employed in the public service before Tom, but he can today say I represented workers as an elected shopsteward, and not in my case. I had never been elected but always in the battle line fighting for worker's rights and the service we need in our office. The regional leadership had passed with flying colours on disservice workers. What I had went through is known by a lot of comrades whom we used to meet in NEHAWU's activities. My participation is known in the highest office of the union, the President's Office. The total provincial leadership knows me through NEHAWU and YCL. The current provincial secretary and provincial treasure are former members of YCL. I'm raising this matter for the second time not to boast but to challenge comrades in analysing the status of NEHAWU. I deliberately leave other unions because other will want to limit my participation to a COSATU affiliate that I know best. This state of trade union is in all COSATU affiliated unions. Some are better than others. I had learned that we have leaders in trade unions that don't have interests of workers in all respect. This is a disease that must be destroyed. Opposition parties and some among the ANC leadership use age to silent differing voices. Painfully this is the same challenge within trade unions. I will encourage young people who are employed and who will be employed to take the bull by it's horn. If we want to advance to socialism, we need to destroy this unbecoming tendency. In the coming months, the Tshwane Region will hold it's regional congress, what type of an organisation do we want in Tshwane. Not forgetting that this is the biggest region of NEHAWU in the country. What state are we in now, where do we want to see ourselves in the next few moths and years to come? As the region in the capital city, what type of programs do we need to advance? Where are we in terms of political capacity? Where are we in terms of organising and representing workers? What kind of leadership will advance the program we want to achieve? I think that this questions and many others will put in a way to build a strong COSATU. Amandla Wonder Nkosi (an un-official shopsteward) -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Nndwamato Mutshidza Sent: 26/02/2009 08:56 AM To: [email protected] Subject: [YCLSA Discussion] Working towards better life for all Cdes, I apologise for responding to you piece late, I have been on a Holiday and I am still on Holiday. While I acknowledge the inability to organise at the work place particularly at CSIR. For those who might not know me, When I joined this SOE this question was the first one I raised with Employer and went to an extend of organising a Task team that will guide the recruitment towards the full launch of the union. I have done this because where I came from (the DME) I was a shopsteward who knows what workers tends to be victimised by these bosses. The very same NEHAWU in Tshwane has failed these workers hence do not speak out of tune without knowing what the issue here. We then made an interim arrangement to enable workers issues to be raised by forming a workers forum such that when things are still shaping up we could continue to represent our own members without full union standing. You see you ought to get to understand the devilish approach of management in dealing with issues here. If I were to attached the circular we have done to galvanised workers you wil at least appreciate this matter. Further down the line there was cdes who were in NEHAWU then at CSIR who left and came back with another Union proposal which is not an Affiliate of COSATU. We squash their initiatives as they have their own interest to push and not of the Alliance workers. I could go ahead and explain the whole issue which might sound defensive. All I am saying is that NEHAWU has not being supportive to the Revival of the UNION at this SOE. On the issue of Energy Crisis, you see chief, when you do not have information about the role and mandate of this SOE, which Research and provide alternative to a wide range of all energy carrier. The issue of Security of Energy Supply is well addressed in both Liquid and Electricity Master Plans, which both of them were developed through the involvement of all affected and key stakeholders including COSATU and NUM in particular. However one need to understand the historical aspect of this crisis. You must at leat go and study the origin of the Energy crisis as it was depicted in 2003, with threats that unless a full investment is done before 2007, we will have run out of our Peak demand. The issue here is that Cabinet decided to suspend Eskom full responsibility to Build New Power plant and said to bring competition and to ensure that there is transparency in electricity pricing we need a full cost of supply model that will reflect what is cost to generate electricity and move away from avoided cost model. I have written extensively on this matter and my masters studies was on this topic and look at other models from other developing countries. The reality being that we advised ANC not to privatise ESKOM when Erwin was still a Communist and Mbeki and his Cabinet listen so that the whole restructuring could be put on hold while investing in our own national utility. We call for Private parties to come to the table and nothing of significant did not come through. when you label CSIR as the organisation that failed to addressed Energy Crisis is full of ignorant. I do not want to lecture you on this topic but will advise that you visit COSATU inputs on Restructuring of the Industry and look at what were the agreed objectives unless you were not a member then. The same objectives are still on the table and we have not moved. You know why? because your so called most advanced Constitution is too liberal in nature giving Local Government to opt to support and not to support. Meaning politician based on unfounded theories decide to pull out of National imperative objectives. A case in point Regional Electricity Distributor (RED) 1 in Cape Town. When the ANC was in charge of the Metro it was approved and the entity was established, when the DA become in charge they reverse that option and as such you find yourself in the same position. My last point on this aspect is to ask you who owns Coal Mines in South Africa? Simply the very same employers wherein NUM organise who are Multinational and as such will always want to sell to you State Owned Utility Eskom at a Spot Price or they will ship the coal to Australia and Canada. It become a tussle to negotiate long term contracts that bind such that you do not ran out of stock pile of Coals and other logistical nightmare that you might not be interested in knowing. Hence I am saying the issue of SA running out of Energy is both our responsibilities in that you must manage you energy demand to help Eskom to improve its reserve margin. An illustration is since the Load shedding of the 23rd January 2008, a National Electricity Response Team was established and you have being warned to switch off other appliance which are not necessary at a point and as you and me are speaking there is no load shedding and Eskom has not commissioned any new plant. But your response has saved us enough energy to continue to support our developmental agenda. You see my leader it is CSIR, ESKOM, GOVERNMENT, COSATU and you and me that should come together and fight this so called energy crisis you raised. Maybe I am more spin doctoring but thats my believe and that of the ANC that all of us should manage our energy effectively. Hence CSIR created a portfolio for Energy Efficiency and Management in response to Government directives to conserve and save energy. Working Together we can do more and move away from the comfort zone of assuming that one utility will saves us. We all have a responsibility. I remain. -- This message is subject to the CSIR's copyright terms and conditions, e-mail legal notice, and implemented Open Document Format (ODF) standard. The full disclaimer details can be found at http://www.csir.co.za/disclaimer.html. This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. MailScanner thanks Transtec Computers for their support. 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