Cdes,
This is what Zama Speelman from facebook had to say on the issue:
nationalisation debate - how to conduct itand how NOT to conduct it
Programmatically, the SACP is committed to struggling for a socialist
South Africa. It's our "core business", if you like. It's the reason
for our existence. The socialist future we aspire to is certainly an
ideal, however we are not interested in consuming endless hours in
speculatively fashioning an elaborate blue-print for some distant
future. This is the kind of futile exercise Marx and Engels always
dismissed as merely "utopian". Our socialism is fundamentally about
waging a struggle, here and now, with and in defence of the workers
and poor.
But how do we wage that struggle? First of all, it isn't and cannot be
some secret plot. We are openly socialist, and (at least since
February 2, 1990) we have been legally socialist as well. Our
socialist struggle is not a conspiracy (you can't possibly build
socialism out of a conspiracy). It is certainly NOT about "capturing"
the ANC by infiltrating communists onto ANC electoral lists! If
communists enjoy popular support and endorsement from within ANC
structures that's great. But they serve in ANC positions as ANC
members. We want to have capable, honest and hard-working ANC cadres
as ANC leaders - some will be communists, many will not be. Rather a
capable non-communist ANC comrade in a leadership position, we say,
than a less capable ANC member who happens to be a communist.
At the heart of the socialism to which we are committed lies the
struggle to build capacity for and momentum towards increasing
democratic social control over the key resources of our society. In
this regard, we are certainly not opposed, in principle, to state
ownership ("nationalisation") as one possible means towards advancing
social control over key resources. But there are several important
qualifications that are required.
In the first place, state ownership of key sectors of the economy is,
in itself, not necessarily a progressive still less anti-capitalist
move - the apartheid regime and various fascist states had extensive
state ownership. Key financial institutions in the UK and US currently
are also now effectively "nationalised". In all of these cases, state
ownership has not been about rolling back the logic of private profits
for a few in the interests of meeting the social needs of the majority
- but rather bureaucratic interventions to rescue capitalism in
crisis. The recent bank buy-outs in some advanced capitalist countries
have been correctly described by mainstream economists as "socialism
for capitalists", while the majority are burdened with a huge national
debt to pay for the bail-outs....
See More
In the second place, as the many recent scandals in our own
parastatals have underlined, public sector ownership, on its own, is
no guarantee that this public property will not be plundered by senior
management for their own private accumulation purposes. Primitive
accumulation rent-seeking is one of the major plagues currently
afflicting our democracy and it lies at the root of many sectarian
battles and disputes within our broader movement. It is absolutely
essential that we wage an intensified battle against it. It would be
the height of hypocrisy, by the way, to be calling for
"nationalisation" on the one hand, while being intimately involved in
the private plundering of public resources on the other.
In advancing our perspective on socialisation, including progressive
nationalisation, the SACP fully intends to locate this advocacy, and
any other discussion on nationalisation/socialisation, within the
context of our shared alliance strategic priorities - jobs and
sustainable livelihoods; health-care; education; rural development;
and fighting crime and corruption. We must all guard against the
opportunistic appropriation of "nationalisation", treating it as a
stand-alone issue and using it as a rhetorical badge of "radicalism".
Any progressive call for nationalisation needs be a coherent and
do-able part of an overall democratic programme.
As the SACP, a party of socialism within an ANC-led alliance, we seek
to encourage a growing appreciation, from among the broad mass of our
people, including the broad ranks of the ANC, of the impossibility of
achieving fundamental progress on our shared priorities without
rolling back the dominance of capital. As far as the SACP is
concerned, we want to make this a non-sectarian and practical
discussion, rather than simply an "ideological" assertion.
Grand-standing doesn't help. Threatening comrades that you won't vote
for them in future elective conference unless they support your
position is infantile and unhelpful.
For instance, the discussion around the transformation of the mining
sector needs to be located within the broader challenge of putting our
country onto a new job-creating growth path. It needs to be about the
role of a transforming mining sector (and indeed a wider
minerals-energy-finance complex) within government's emerging
Industrial Policy Action Plan (IPAP). How we transform the mining
sector should be located within such a broader discussion and not be
based on one-third of a de-contextualised clause in the Freedom
Charter.
But the question of socialisation extends far beyond just a
narrowly-defined economic domain. It relates to all of the other key
strategic priorities of our ANC-led alliance. The transformation of
health-care, for instance, requires (as the ANC is coming, in effect,
to increasingly recognize and affirm) precisely the enhancement of
socialisation in the sector (strengthening the public health sector;
rolling back the power of the pharmaceutical industry; the roll-out of
a national health insurance, etc.). The ANC and government might not
use the word "socialisation" (and that doesn't matter) - but this is
exactly the kind of converging appreciation for which we, as the SACP,
are struggling.
The same can be said for the turn-around in education - with the
important growing realisation that transformation (or in our
terminology "socialisation") of the sector doesn't just mean an
improving "state-controlled" sector (that's critical), but also, in
this case, the effective mobilisation of key social forces (teachers,
parents, learners, communities) around a unifying transformational
agenda.
Likewise, fighting corruption, another shared strategic priority,
critically relates to bringing the state and especially the SOEs under
a social/developmental mandate - as opposed to using them as sources
for primitive accumulation. The current crisis around governance,
golden hand-shakes, exorbitant tariffs, and failures to actually
effectively deliver in many SOEs provides us with an opportunity to
advance (not the cause of privatisation, as the DA will do) but rather
their effective and increasing socialisation - i.e. subordination to
the logic of meeting social needs not private profits.
As we have said in the recent past, the SACP welcomes the ANCYL's
attempt to raise questions around the transformation of the mining
sector, including possible nationalisation. We are the last ones to be
scandalised or disapproving of such a discussion. We are concerned,
however, that unless this important debate is raised in a constructive
way, and for principled reasons, it runs the risk of dividing the ANC
and our broader movement, and of discrediting the very real need for
major structural transformation in our society
On 2/3/10, Makatse Mzukisi <[email protected]> wrote:
> Comrade Sithe,
>
>
>
> I don't think your disaggregation of the composition of the ANC
> membership is correct. I also feel that you are quick on attacking the
> comrade than providing a logical analysis.
>
>
>
> As we all know the ANC is a multi class and multi strata organization
> that seeks as its mission to unite all the people of South Africa under
> a non-racial, non-sexist, democratic, united and prosperous country. Its
> main revolutionary motive force though, in class terms, is the working
> class, urban and rural poor. In this context, the dominance and
> leadership role of the working class in the ANC can only be assured if
> this class is conscious of its interests as a class and work hard to
> influence policy in the ANC for its own class interests. This will not
> be an easy task because there are other classes who have different ways
> of ensuring their influence in the ANC. Unfortunately these other
> classes and strata are better off financially than the working class.
> They put in millions to buy policy direction. They fund the most
> elementary lumpens to advocate with terror their class interests
> disguised as interests of the majority of the poor.
>
>
>
> So comrade, no amount of rhetoric will ensure the influence of the
> working class and the broad left in the ANC. What is important is
> practical political activity at branch level. Some of these forces
> advancing bourgeoisie class interests disguised as pro poor calls like
> nationalization of mines and the like, are hard at work to ensure that
> branches buy into this agenda.
>
>
>
> Sometimes you will find that it is not about how conscious the working
> class is for it to be able to defend the ANC from the bourgeoisie take
> over. It is about how hungry and disillusioned is the working class. If
> the left protagonists do not work hard with the mass of the working
> class and the poor to ensure that the ANC delivers on the basic needs of
> the working class and the poor, the danger is for this class to be
> susceptible to any form of rhetoric and schemes that promises a quick
> and unsustainable income. Consistent work among the masses of the
> working class and the poor must be guided by practical programmes that
> respond to both the immediate and long term interests of this class.
>
>
>
> Mzukisi
>
>
>
> ________________________________
>
> From: [email protected]
> [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Sithembewena
> tsembeyi
> Sent: 03 February 2010 01:39 PM
> To: [email protected]
> Subject: Re: [YCLSA Discussion] Mantashe is a goner, says Malema -The
> Times
>
>
>
> Surely now I am convinced that you are iether miss informed or just
> plain ignorant. Fact is more than 90% of ANC members are working class,
> the question here is not ideological understanding and consciousness, of
> which we cant out source as communist, remember we members of the SACP
> are only an advance and most resolute section of the working class, it
> is equally at our tusk that we work towards to societal consciousness.
>
> It is relatively known that the SACP and the COSATU are not just a baais
> movement for the working class, it is not calculatingly that we are not
> a greed organ towards our resolute responsibility but you should know
> what we stand for at-least.
>
> Basically accommodating tranches of capitalism is not primarily
> non-revolutionary but tactically correct, in simple terms keep your
> friends close and keep your enemy even more closer , but however reading
> comprehensively will at time assist you my friend.
>
> --- On Wed, 2/3/10, Zamikhaya Maseti <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>
> From: Zamikhaya Maseti <[email protected]>
> Subject: Re: [YCLSA Discussion] Mantashe is a goner, says Malema -The
> Times
> To: [email protected]
> Date: Wednesday, February 3, 2010, 3:03 AM
>
> If one follows your logic, then the ANC ceases to be a broad church. It
> is slowly but surely becoming a socialist or communist organisation. I
> doubt if your analysis and reading of the of the ANC is accurate. If
> that is the case, why is the remains a political centre not the Alliance
> as some of the Left forces would like the situation to be. The ANC is
> forever contested by the contending class forces that you find within
> its own ranks. The misreading of the Polokwane outcome continues to
> baffle me. But, only time will tell.
>
> On Wed, Feb 3, 2010 at 12:52 PM, Sithembewena tsembeyi
> <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> I think Zamikhaya and others your defenatly falling in to the trap, and
> gradually missing the point here, it is not through these few hooligans
> that the conference will be determined. However there is a fundamental
> reality that credibility will be the menu of the day..
>
> Maybe you have no realization that the ANC led alliance is confiscated
> through all the alliance partners and this merely means that ANC has by
> its own right a right to forward its mandatory elements in the
> discussion as per say. But what they fail to understand that over 90 %
> of members of the ANC are from left formation that is the affiliates of
> COSATU and also members of the communist party are by their own right
> members of the ANC too, this serve to say that they as members of ANC
> are constitutionally allowed to participate in nomination electing etc.
> towards the conference and make no mistake all members of the ANC know
> their true leaders and will not be fooled by these nonsensical public
> staging by some.
>
> So what is key to us is to reflect to realistic issues that they are at
> utmost trying to intimidate us not to participate as they have realised
> classical ideological content.
>
> I participate in the Branch of the ANC every Monday and for every
> meeting I have learnt that pro-nationalist, with liberal tendencies and
> their forever aspirations for capital, corruption, riches and the likes
> will forever fill threatened by those that lead clarity on paramount
> issues.
>
> --- On Wed, 2/3/10, Zamikhaya Maseti <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>
> From: Zamikhaya Maseti <[email protected]>
>
>
> Subject: Re: [YCLSA Discussion] Mantashe is a goner, says Malema -The
> Times
> To: [email protected]
>
> Date: Wednesday, February 3, 2010, 2:34 AM
>
> If Gwede goes as the Youth League wants, that will mean that both COSATU
> and the SACP have no influence over the ANC. If he stays that will
> confirm the strenghth of the Left. The question is:what is it that you
> are doing on the ground to make sure that all your cadres stay, it's not
> just Gwede alone. This is the question which in my view should preoccupy
> of all Communists, young and old.
>
> On Wed, Feb 3, 2010 at 7:40 AM, <[email protected]
> <http://mc/[email protected]> > wrote:
>
> Qabane, cde mantashe articulates the decisions of the ANC as ANC GS and
> articulates the views of the SACP as SACP chairperson and let us not
> confuse his different roles. Infact I agree with the view that we need
> to
> have more radical approach but that can not be done by Gwede alone as
> ANC
> GS. That can be done by being more influencial to ANC NEC at large,
> become
> more influencial in all structures of ANC in particular and ultimately
> to
> have more radical change in ANC policies during ANC policy conferences
> and
> congresses.
>
> Cdes im very worried by the silence of SACP, COSATU AND YCL in issue of
> nationalisation of mines even if we dont agree with ANCYL version we
> must
> put more flash on it. May that is why we hear likes of Shabangu so
> strong
> about impossibility of nationalisation of mines and i wonder why. Infact
> cdes, there might be a reason beind the ANCYL call which we might not
> know
> but one will ask what is our position.
>
> Malemas say that Gwede is a goner might not be undermined maqabane.
> Malema
> thinks he is the POWER HOUSE of this ANC led movement and we must teach
> him a lesson. Cdes if we allow Gwede to be out voted, that will mean we
> are not at all ready to start building socialism.
>
>
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> Zamikhaya Maseti
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> Cell: 082 6626563
> Tel: 012 661 8431 (h)
> Fax: 0866847036
> E-mail: [email protected]
> [email protected]
>
> A Man Cannot Discover Oceans Unless He Has The Courage To Lose The
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