SPECIAL NATIONAL EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE STATEMENT

3rd September 2010

The NEC held a special meeting on Friday, 03 September 2010, at Gallagher Estate, Midrand to access the impact of the public service strike and to report on the ANC readiness on the National General Council to be held in two weeks from now, the 20th to 24th September 2010, at the Durban Exhibition Centre.

On the Public Service Strike

The ANC welcomes the suspension of the industrial action and the return to work by public servants.  We view this act as a step in the right direction to restore stability and normality particularly in the health and education services.

Furthermore, this suspension of the strike will give an opportunity:

• For both government and the Unions to refine the final agreement

• For both government and the unions to development a clear framework to process issues

• To talk to the need to refrain from hurling insults at each other during protests. Hurling insults is not helpful but complicate the process of negotiations and hardens attitudes.

• To the ANC and the Alliance to deal with Alliance relations objectively

The Special NEC took a dim view to the hurling of insults during the industrial action which relegated the bargaining process into personal attacks.  It is very important that moving forward that the language used during industrial action should be given attention, particularly by strikers and the unions.

The Special NEC also took a very dim view that acts of criminality during strikes makes the process redundant. Such tendencies must be discussed by both government and the union leadership.  It is nonetheless our view that acts of criminality like assaults and intimidation on non-striking workers should be acted upon by our law enforcement agencies. Even during industrial action, this country remains with laws that need to be given utmost respect by all parties.  The ANC Officials will raise the above matters with COSATU Officials at a meeting convened for next week Monday.

The suspension of the strike is important, as it will also give an opportunity for the parties involved to have a common understanding of what is meant by "essential services".

On the National General Council (NGC)

The special NEC received and approved a report detailing that the NGC preparations are on track and this biggest political school in the calendar of the ANC will be attended by two thousand (2000) delegates of which one thousand five hundred (1500) will be from branches of the ANC. The other five hundred delegates will be drawn from Provincial Executive Committees (PEC's) and the Leagues as well as Alliance partners.

An additional figure of eight hundred (800) will attend the NGC drawn from various categories of deployed cadres inclusive of Ministers who are not in the NEC, Director-Generals, Premiers, CEO's of Public Entities etc.

The programme of the NGC will commence with a plenary session on the 20th September 2010 which will receive a political report from President Zuma, a State of the Organisation Report from the Secretary General, as well as a financial report from the Treasurer General. The plenary will also receive reports on Strategy and Tactics, the Discussion document on Leadership renewal, discipline and organisational culture and the discussion document on Organisational Renewal.

The 21st and 22nd of September will be dedicated to ten commissions that will look into a broad range of issues including the documents mentioned above and Social Transformation, Education and Health, Peace and Stability, Economic Transformation, International Relations, Media Diversity and Communications as well as Legislature, Governance and Local Government Elections.  These commissions will report back to plenary on the 23rd of September 2010.

On the 24th of September 2010, all delegates of the NGC and invited guests will attend a heritage rally at Moses Mabida Stadium which will be addressed by President Jacob Zuma.

NEC members will converge in Durban as from the 13th of September 2010 to interact with branches, Cadres Forums and other progressive formations prior to the start of the NGC on the 20th to the 24th of September 2010.

Statement issued by Gwede Mantashe, African National Congress Secretary General, September 7 2010

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