MEDIA STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETING HELD ON THE 23-24 MARCH 2012.
The National Executive Committee meeting held its normal session over two days on 23-24 March 2012 at St Georges Hotel.
It was important that the meeting was held on the Human Rights week. The Human Rights day was used to celebrate the fifteenth anniversary of the constitution of the Republic, hence the decision to hold it in Kliptown. This has to be explained to demystify the notion of this event having been stolen from Sharpeville.
The opposite is true in that the Human Rights Day should be celebrated by the nation. It is also important to remind the people of South Africa that the 2009 Human Rights day was held in Kimberly and the 2011 event was held in Athlone.
In both occasions there were no protests. A clear explanation must be given to the people of Sharpeville that recognising this day as a public holiday in the country means that the role of Sharpeville and her people in our shared history has not diminished but has been enhanced.
The NEC reaffirmed that the South African Constitution is transformative and therefore worth celebrating. This constitution and the strong provisions for human rights is a culmination of many years of struggle for human rights. Foundation for human rights was set by the ANC over a long period of time; the Bill of Rights in 1923, the African Claims in 1943, the Women's Charter in 1954, the Freedom Charter in 1955, the principles for Democratic South Africa 1988 in preparation for the possibility of a negotiated settlement.
We must insist on ensuring that the Constitution is a living document that talks to the needs of the people. The NEC reaffirmed that the constitution must be for the people and not the emerging notion of the people being for the constitution.
The NEC reaffirmed the right of all the citizens to protest. The ANC will always move from the premise that protests are genuine and people have genuine grievances. The ANC will always be readily available to engage in the case of protest and work with the people in trying to find solutions to the problems. Destruction of property during protests must not only be condemned but be treated like any criminal act.
When people are exercising their right it must always be emphasised that the rights of others must never be infringed upon. Branches of the ANC must work among the people and provide leadership all the time. ANC deployees at all levels of government must be responsive and communicate with communities more effectively.
With regard to the meeting with COSATU on Monday 26 March 2012 the ANC will be engaging her ally in an attempt to understand the essence of the unhappiness. The ANC is moving from the premise that it has implemented the commitments made both in terms of the Polokwane resolution and the 2009 national elections manifesto in respect of the labour brokers.
The question of e-tolling has been on the agenda for over a decade. Again an attempt will be made to ensure that we are having the same understanding. It is important that decisions be respected by parties involved in any exercise. Otherwise the basis of engagement is weakened.
The discussions must also look at the massive improvement in social wage since 1994 and seek to find sustainable ways of improving the lives of our people. We are hoping that by the end of the day on Monday there will be better understanding between the ANC and COSATU on both matters.
With the majority of draft policy documents having been released, the NEC members will be deployed to facilitate discussions with the branches and other formations in society. The issues raised by KAIROS Southern Africa in respect of certain policy proposal are being looked into, particularly the question of international solidarity.
The NEC will continue to engage any formation in society that wants to make a contribution in our policy discussions. A meeting will be set up with Afrikaner Academics to engage them on the issues they have raised with the ANC. The ANC is keen to engage as many formations in society as possible in the run-up to the policy conference.
The NEC endorsed the scheduled congress of the Socialist International which is scheduled to take place on August 30 - September 1st 2012. The ANC as a member of the IS, will host this congress at the international Convention Centre in Cape Town. President Zuma will deliver the opening address. A preparatory team comprising political and technical capacities was established.
Four provinces of the ANC will be holding their elective conferences between now and May. The meeting resolved that NEC members will avail themselves to oversee and supervise these provincial conferences to ensure disciplined conduct of our members and also the success of these conferences. The leadership in attendance will ensure non-tolerance of gestures and songs that denigrate the leadership of the ANC.
A document on Organisational Renewal was presented and discussed by the meeting and it was agreed that it must be refined and presented to an urgent extended NWC meeting to be convened soon. Once this document has been finalized it will be released for discussion by our branches, our structures and all our alliance structures as well as all South Africans.
The African National Congress supports the ten National Health Insurance (NHI) pilot project sites that were launched by the National Department of Health. This will go a long way in paving the way for the introduction of a full scale National Health Insurance.
We are happy that the pilot projects will target the most vulnerable in the ten selected sites to reduce high maternal and child mortality and to strengthen district health systems by improving professional human capacity, infrastructure and the provisioning of medicine. We also welcome the KwaZulu-Natal province for having added the eleventh site to be funded by the province. We encourage other provinces to emulate the KZN province.
Statement issued by Gwede Mantashe, ANC Secretary General, March 25 2012
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