ANC statement

The Congress of South African Trade Unions has noted the statement issued by the African National Congress, which accuses the federation of being ‘divisive' and ‘creating instability in the alliance'.

COSATU however respectfully rejects the criticisms and stands by every word of its statement issued on 4 March 2010. When ANC members read that statement carefully they will see that there is no basis for the criticisms levelled in the ANC statement. The federation seeks only to unite and take forward the ANC and the Alliance.

The federation was categorically not taking "pot shots at the ANC and the government", but making a serious and well-balanced analysis of the State of the Nation and Budget speeches.

Our statement emphasised that COSATU has the fullest confidence in the ANC, both its membership and leadership.

The comments which are being condemned as ‘divisive' were certainly not directed against the ANC as a whole, and we are confident that the ANC membership and the majority of South Africans will overwhelmingly support the strong stance COSATU has taken against what we have characterised as "a small right-wing tendency led by materialists and tenderpreneurs within the ANC leadership" who are "trying hard to take us back to the politics of labelling, name calling, back-stabbing, rumour and scandal mongering, marginalisation and closure of space for free and democratic debates".

We are criticising a small unrepresentative group who want to reverse the great progress we have made since the ANC 2007 Polokwane conference. The federation seeks only to unite the Alliance and the country behind the excellent resolutions passed at that conference and the leadership which it elected, in which we have full confidence.

Statement issued by Patrick Craven, COSATU national spokesperson, March 4 2010

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