“Democracy is founded on full bellies and peaceful minds” (Afrifa Gitonga)

Dear Metalworkers,
It is unbelievable that we have come to the end of 2012, a momentous year that saw us celebrating 25 years of heroic existence. We capped our 25 years of existence with a very successful 9th national congress that was followed by industrialists, politicians, workers and ordinary people. We reminded ourselves that we have a huge responsibility for our members and society.

We said that despite the effects of the global financial crisis of capitalism and the failure by our government to prescribe the correct South African medicine for the challenges brought by this crisis, we will soldier on within the Tripartite Alliance to find solutions together for the poverty, unemployment and inequality that is ravaging our members and society at large.

This was also a momentous year for the leader of the Tripartite Alliance, the African National Congress. We all joined our movement in celebrating 100 years of its existence.

This gave the ANC an opportunity to introduce to the nation all the heroes that led the ANC from 1912 through the political lectures that took place all year long in different locations of our country, as well as other events to celebrate the centenary took place outside the country.

In our congress, we reflected on the past 18 years of that century, and called on the leaders to roll up their sleeves to do things differently, in order to address the triple crisis of poverty, unemployment and inequality and to make sense to the young people of our country, who are becoming despondent because of the lack of opportunities, even for those with tertiary education.

On this score, we called on our government to realise that it is through industrialisation that our country and our continent can respond to the challenges imposed by the global financial crisis of capitalism and neo-liberalisation that those who were privileged to lead our country in the 1990s chose instead of the popular Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) that was adopted by the Tripartite Alliance.

There is evidence that the economic development happening in the Asian countries called “Asian Tigers” was the route to economic development. This was neither modernisation theory nor dependence theory, but the elusive growth with equity theory.

Many authors have commented that South Africa’s RDP was our growth with equity theory and that it was going to deliver better economic development results than over-reliance on foreign direct investment that was championed by the Growth and Redistribution Policy (Gear) adopted by our leaders in 1996.

We will continue to engage our comrades in all areas, including the streets. We are always aware that what we cannot win at the table must be fought for in the streets. Our campaigns will continue to fight for the banning of labour brokers, the rejection of the youth wage subsidy, the banning of scrap metal exports, the protection of South African-sensitive industries through tariffs, and the nationalisation of the strategic sectors of our economy.

Our vanguard party, the South African Communist Party, held a national congress, which took place when the relationship between the two left components of the Alliance was at the lowest point since 1994.

Because of this unfortunate situation, Cosatu did not get the opportunity to contribute adequately to the deliberations of the congress of the SACP, so that we could analyse together, from a left perspective, what has transpired in our country for the past 18 years, and in particular between 2007 and now.

These two formations like hand and glove to save the ANC from what was happening when the former leadership, led by former President Thabo Mbeki, tried to provoke the left components to leave the Tripartite Alliance.

A very unfortunate incident deepened the chasm between one of the biggest Cosatu affiliates, Numsa and the SACP. What took place in Empangeni pertaining to the safety and security of the Numsa general secretary was reduced to a trivial matter. But it cannot be trivial that the security personnel of another leader followed another leader for 30 kilometres.

The SACP resolved to amend its constitution to have a second deputy secretary general who will work full-time in the office. The question needs to be posed if this was a response to an important matter raised by Cosatu after the public sector strike, or just a necessary internal change initiated by the SACP itself.

We do need to discuss this matter and decide if it does address the issues that were raised by all Cosatu affiliates at the level of the CEC. I had the privilege of meeting both the new national chairperson of the SACP and the party‘s second deputy general secretary, and we spoke about the Numsa/SACP bilateral that must take place in February after many attempts for this important meeting to take place.

As Numsa we will do everything in our power to ensure the sitting of the bilateral meeting in February at the date to be confirmed between our organisations.

In the meeting with the chairperson of the SACP, who is also president of the NUM, we also discussed the NUM/Numsa bilateral that must take place very soon. The NUM is facing challenges in the mining sector, which have become challenges for all Cosatu affiliates and the working class in general.

The infamous Marikana massacre has highlighted serious issues about our 18 years of democracy. Afrifa Gitonga’s statement that democracy is founded on full bellies and peaceful minds rings true when one sees the visuals of what happened in Rustenburg.

To reduce what happened in Marikana to a labour dispute or a fight for members between two or even three unions is to ignore the reality of serious challenges of a political transition that has not led to economic development for the majority of the people, as well as the brutality of capital represented by the mining sector, which has continued to expropriate our mineral resources without any contribution to the communities around the mines and the people of South Africa.

The role of politicians and beneficiaries of the failed, now exposed Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment Policy brought to the fore the fact that BBBEE became an obstacle to the people’s desire for full bellies and peaceful minds.

When a “revolutionary” former leader of the ANC Youth League left the British-owned Lonmin Platinum Mine scot-free after condemning what happened in Marikana, I saw the challenges brought by lack of class-oriented political education in our movement.

Even though he did not call for people to be killed, as suggested by the lawyer in the Farlam Commission of Enquiry, Cyril Ramaphosa’s active involvement was not expected from a leader who led the biggest mining strike in 1987.

Numsa’s continuity and change approach has been adopted by Cosatu, which supports President Jacob Zuma for another term as the president of the ANC, joined by more working class-biased leaders in the top six and the NEC.

The process of nominations is revealing serious challenges for the movement that must be attended to immediately to restore confidence to the organisation in the eyes of ordinary people. For Cosatu, serious questions arise in relation to the non-implementation of the full 2015 plan.

This means that the working class leaders must negotiate with other leaders in the ANC. The plan calls for Cosatu to work hard in the next three years to approach the nomination process differently in 2017, in the interests of the working class.

It is with humility that on behalf of the collective of national office-bearers, I wish all of you a peaceful and enjoyable festive season with your families.

For those of you who are shopstewards, please spend this time with your families, because next year will be very busy with collective bargaining in almost all our sectors.

We are aware that collective bargaining post-Marikana will be different and as Numsa we will think hard about what approaches are needed to achieve the best results for all our members.

We have also decided to achieve 400 000 members by 2016. Please continue to recruit members to Numsa in churches, community meetings, imigcagco, immemulo, on the beaches, in the picnics and in family meetings.

Thank you.
Cedric Gina, Numsa President