Issue 5, Vol 10: 22 February 2013 In this issue:
Liberals and their toy telephones Liberals and their toy telephones By Mawethu Rune In its 53rd Congress the ANC set with a theme “Unity in actions towards socio-economic freedom”. This was elaborated in the strategy and tactics document. However, there are limitations in that the new, post-1994 democratic institutions are in place and functional, but systematic and structural domination in the economy remains stubborn. Therefore conference was clear and mandated the government to accelerate and focus on socio-economic aspects in the interest of the majority that is still trapped in class inequality, poverty and unemployment. While this was largely accepted and celebrated but certain groupings believed that the ANC must be defeated as it begins to threaten their wealth and stakes. For them the ANC must restrict itself to a lean and mean state that does nothing except to allocate tenders to private sector firms to deliver services like water, electricity, etc. and the infrastructure that will facilitate private capital accumulation. In their not so big minds they believe that the economy must be left in the mercy of the private sector and its market forces, regardless of proven record everywhere in the world that market forces are incapacitated of steering a shared, equitable, sustainable growth path that responds to the needs of the majority. These market forces are aware that if the Mangaung resolve has to be blocked it would imperative that the legitimacy and bona fides of the ANC and government must be castigated. Accordingly those who are elected in public offices must not be trusted and confidence of the people must erode from their own government and ANC alliance. Every action of government and ANC alliance proposals must be treated with suspicion in that they actually want to benefit themselves and not the broader society. Take for example an article authored by Madam Zille in the DA’s website on 23 January 2013 titled ‘The 1913 Land Act: the real issues 100 years on’. The ANC has identified the unresolved land question as a critical issue. It is therefore beginning to put concrete suggestions in resolving this fundamentally economic and justifiably emotive issue. Madam Zille jumps in unceremoniously and remarks that land restitution has failed squarely because of inherently corrupt and incapacitated ANC government. She then suggests that the solution to land restitution is to focus the African majority to farm in the available 13% of land with perfection and not bother white farmers because anything contrary will compromise food security. Surely Zille is insulting the African majority, and displaying not only her essentially racist and ignorant character but that of her party as well. The 13% that the African people were squeezed in is not an arable land. The were dispossessed, ostracized, chastened, concentrated in reserves and forcefully excluded from the productive force that is a fertile land in the country of their own by colonisers. But today the Madam conveniently blames the ANC for this catastrophic legacy. Understood in its proper context, her argument is that land restitution and land reform is unnecessary and the racist status quo generated from the 1913 Land Act must remain in force. Therefore we must refuse to be sold a ‘dummy’ and or ‘toy telephone’ as if the problems in this country are due to the alleged incompetence of the ANC-government. The DA is not alone. It is supported by big finance capital as evidenced in the FNB’s media campaign on “help by changing the regime” advert. Why we may have issues with uneven capacity of the state or corrupt elements in it this must not defocus us from real issues. Property relations in our country do not reflect its demographics. We must therefore refuse dummies and focus on unity in action towards greater political and socio-economic freedom. The reality is that the exploitation of the majority and their exclusion from ownership and control in the economy were not an accident of history but were human and socially engineered. Overturning that legacy requires a deliberate intervention by the ANC-led alliance as the leading force of revolutionary change to reverse and substitute the structural and systematic exploitation and the exclusion of the majority from ownership and control. This must indeed involve unity, a correct focus, resolve and determination. We must be alive that those who represent the ruling class will inevitably refuse any meaningful change. They will forever be threatened when the ANC-led alliance CHANGE gears and increases its focus on greater political freedom and socio economic emancipation as part of a process for a one, uninterrupted national democratic revolution. It must come as no surprise that the ruling class that is in charge of the media and other platforms will seek to defocus the nation from what is primary with several dummies and toy telephones which we must treat as such. In a related point the confirmation of the existence of a pseudo political party by one Mamphela Ramphele must be welcome so that we know openly what we have been faced with. For sometimes now it has been evident that there existed an oppositionist party camouflaged as self-proclaimed independent intellectuals, analysts and “civil society”. One have always maintained that intellectuals in every developmental society are important in so far as aiding a democratic project and sustainable development are concerned and not in being destructive and availing their jackets as alternative to the people’s cause. As for independence we have always maintained it is an illusion to conceal one’s class interest and association as we know that nothing exist in isolation and everything is inter-dependent to another. Ramphele’s party is not new and its lackeys in Mbeki, Mashele and Brutus have also been in concert against the ANC. This party has existed for sometimes in a different forms and being paraded in every media space including the public broadcaster to rubbish the democratic government and build momentum against it. But they are not by any stretch of imagination a strategic threat to the ANC-led alliance. Their ideological orientation will blind them from being programmatic and from appreciating that the essence of South African challenges is class divisions and not that some people are born clever than others or some are geniuses while others. Their liberal orientation blinds them in realising that what is obtaining is structural and warrants a revolutionary programme. Ramphele’s like minded are trapped in politics of recency. They are so convinced that as individuals they are the best thing to happen in South Africa and therefore only they can deliver a better life. They are incapable of seeing the people as determining and as being the propellers of history. According to Ramphele’s like minded people must be invited to their dream as if theyare incapable of determining their path. It is them and not the people who are the forces of change and therefore their self-gratification and taking people for granted will be their major downfall. Ramphele will do well to remember that being associated with revolutionary yesterday does not automatically make one a revolutionary of today. Those of us who were students at the Walter Sisulu University our scars are vivid on bitter struggles, the honourable doctor being on the side of those who wanted the university to be closed down because “it did not make business sense”. The honourable doctor who ironically got co-opted by a racist council failed to transform the University of Cape Town. Devastating consequences are still felt by workers and students. The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank which the honourable doctor undermined the sovereignty of African states and forced on the throats of our people liberal policies that caused misery. Mawethu Rune is the YCLSA Deputy National Chairperson Sent from my iPhone -- -- You are subscribed. This footer can help you. Please POST your comments to [email protected] or reply to this message. 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