Remedy for COSATU tension lies beyond personalities, says POPCRU leader Karl Gernetzky, Business Day, Johannesburg, 3 November 2013 DISAGREEMENTS are inevitable within the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) over the direction of the federation, but a way forward will be found if personalities are kept out of such disputes, Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (POPCRU) president Zizamele Cebekhulu said on Sunday. Tension among COSATU affiliates over the fate of suspended general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi has raised the prospect of a fragmentation of the federation ahead of next year's general election and prevented it from fully organising in matters such as its opposition to Gauteng e-tolls. POPCRU, which is aligned to COSATU president Sdumo Dlamini, is one of several affiliates supporting the federation during court battles to overturn Mr Vavi's suspension. Speaking during POPCRU's three-day national central executive committee meeting in Irene, Gauteng, Mr Cebekhulu said despite questions about "which side POPCRU is on", observers would find "no signs, as POPCRU is on the side of COSATU". "It is normal that in any organisation there will be disagreements, but this shouldn't be based on personalities," he said. Agreements based on principles will inevitably be resolved as members recognise they are fighting for the same goals, he said. Mr Cebekhulu's message on Sunday was similar to that of the South African Democratic Teachers' Union (SADTU), which concluded its own annual national meeting last month. SADTU denounced attempts to subvert normal disciplinary processes within COSATU and criticised the call for a special national congress to resolve the issue. The POPCRU leader said on Sunday the union should now turn its attention to the role of the ANC in government in the past 20 years, adding that many comments stemming from violent service-delivery protests were "lies being peddled by those unable to deal with their grievances internally". He lashed out at attempts by the Democratic Alliance (DA) to showcase the ANC's failures, such as during Saturday's launch of DA Gauteng premiership candidate Mmusi Maimane's "Believe in Change" campaign, saying it would simply strengthen the resolve of the ANC and its alliance partners. "Through their manifesto they make us angry . I like the DA because on the eve of the elections they remind us we are blacks," said Mr Cebekhulu. "We know we have problems, but ... we have never lost our focus on the ball." Mr Maimane on Saturday called for Gauteng residents to vote for the DA, saying that though the ANC previously had good leaders and policies, it ultimately betrayed voters through the abuse of power for personal gain. "We see a system of insiders and outsiders. People with political connections get rich and everyone else is left to struggle on their own," Mr Maimane said in a speech prepared for delivery. Addressing the POPCRU conference on Sunday, Police Minister Nathi Mthethwa called on the police to gain the trust of the community, saying the need for such an approach had been amply demonstrated during recent events. "Policing is most effective when it enjoys the support of the community," he said. Mr Mthethwa also asked for an improvement in police culture, saying "there are people within the state that do not share the views of the government of the day". He added: "We need a cadre of cop that understands that the government of the day has its own programmes and abides by these programmes." From: http://www.bdlive.co.za/national/labour/2013/11/03/remedy-for-COSATU-tension -lies-beyond-personalities-says-POPCRU-leader# <http://www.bdlive.co.za/national/labour/2013/11/03/remedy-for-cosatu-tensio n-lies-beyond-personalities-says-popcru-leader> -- -- You are subscribed. This footer can help you. Please POST your comments to [email protected] or reply to this message. You can visit the group WEB SITE at http://groups.google.com/group/yclsa-eom-forum for different delivery options, pages, files and membership. To UNSUBSCRIBE, please email [email protected] . You don't have to put anything in the "Subject:" field. You don't have to put anything in the message part. All you have to do is to send an e-mail to this address (repeat): [email protected] . --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "YCLSA Discussion Forum" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
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