SACP GAUTENG PREPARES FOR MASS STRUGGLES AGAINST INSTALLATION OF COUNTER-REVOLUTIONARY REGIME IN THE PROVINCE

The South African Communist Party Gauteng Province held a Special PEC meeting on Sunday, 14th August 2016 in Johannesburg, a continuation of a Special Provincial Working Committee (PWC) meeting held on Sunday, 7th August 2016.

The PEC welcomed the preliminary assessment made by the Politburo of the 13th National Congress Central Committee through a Press Statement released on Monday, 8th August 2016.

In particular, the PEC reaffirmed the profound principle of the Politburo that the process of analysis must be robust, frank and honest without degenerating into finger pointing and blame game.

The PEC further agreed that we all take collective responsibility for the strength and weaknesses of the National Democratic Revolution (NDR). We therefore adopted a Political Report titled "SACP Gauteng Province's Reflections on the 2016 Local Government elections outcomes."

The Committee thanked the working class and revolutionary people of our province for voting for the African National Congress (ANC), which remains the most popular movement and revolutionary choice of the people. We congratulated the Red Brigade for an excellent contribution to the achievement of the electoral support we achieved in our province.

We conducted a comprehensive and detailed broader political analysis focusing on the root causes and historic factors that saw the ANC losing support in three Metros in one election. The PEC agreed that these results posed a real danger with a great potential to finally implode and degenerate the NDR.

We therefore identified the following three broad factors, namely:

- Poor and severe living conditions of the working class underpinned by high levels of poverty, unemployment and inequality. This originates from the historic factors of a racially based Colonialism of a Special Type (CST). This includes the history and negative impact of the capitalist system and its tendency of crisis internationally. These historic factors tend to reproduce poverty, unemployment and inequality.

- The urgent need for a strong, united and decisive branch in all Voting Districts across the province, with the capacity and capability, based on a consistent political education programme to mobilise the working class.

- An aggressive, determined and confident historic class enemy sponsored by Imperialism that wages a low intensity counter-revolution to finally defeat the ANC led Alliance.

The PEC identified the contradictions and implications for the working class with the potential installation of a counter-revolutionary regime especially in Tshwane and City of Joburg.

We resolved to reposition the Party and our lower structures in the province to wage consistent mass struggles in anticipation of a reactionary and counter-revolutionary regime. This regime will be composed of the DA and EFF coalition. We strongly believe that EFF-DA coalition will be huge disaster for the working class.

The PEC also committed to following up on a picket it held at ETV offices in Hyde Park in July 2016, against the use of opinion polls to de-campaign the ANC in the elections. In this regard, the PEC will consult with the Central Committee on the way forward. We have noted that while media houses can report on polls, we have a problem with them manufacturing and cooking these polls as they sacrifice the diversity of views and therefore compromise their impartiality and violate the principles of fair reporting.

The PEC has also reaffirmed what the Politburo and Cosatu has said to the extent that the ANC will not have any coalition discussions with the DA, which is the enemy of our people and the official representative of the colonial and imperialist masters in our country.

We have also realised the urgent need to strengthen Alliance relations between all partners to drive the programme to go back to the people especially in the townships where the working class resides. The PEC has recommitted itself to fight against factionalism, corruption and corporate capture of organs of state.

The SACP realises that these elections and the results that followed, present the broad revolutionary movement with an opportunity to correct its mistakes and to go back to its revolutionary traditions. This is indeed an opportune time for the ANC to reclaim its historical space within the working class and the poor.

Statement issued by Jacob Mamabolo, SACP Gauteng Provincial Secretary, 14 August 2016