Our Chairman Is A Critical Thinker: It is a fallacy to believe that Julius Malema and his gang have invented the struggle, says Lebogang Maile. In a century, the ANC has striven to position itself as an agent of change and beacon of hope for the oppressed. As a national liberation movement steeped in progressive traditions, the party and its leagues have engaged society on the premise that struggle is the driving force of history. Changes in society happen as a consequence of struggle. Therefore, human agency is an important part of the struggle to change society for the better. Over years, the ANC has come to understand that politics and economics are interrelated and they constitute what is called in critical scholarship “political economy”. The ANC’s position as leader of the revolution was earned through leadership and struggle, not statements at rallies. The challenges of social transformation in post-apartheid South Africa are given to the current generation as a negative heritage of the past. But the ANC as an agent for change is not a prisoner of history. As a progressive organisation, working with and among the people, it will always strive to be the torch bearer of freedom. In the early years of its formation, the ANC used an apt slogan: Mayibuye i-Africa (Let the land of our ancestors return to the people). Later, it championed the African Claims, which advocated Africa’s freedom from colonialism and its right to be treated as an equal partner in global affairs, and – most importantly – in 1955, it adopted the Freedom Charter in which the core demands of a dispossessed people are recognised and our collective human dignity restored. It is therefore a fallacy to suggest that Julius Malema and his gang in the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) have invented this struggle. Certainly, 20 years is not enough to undo the legacies of colonialism and apartheid, but it is enough for us to know what we have, what we were not supposed to do and what we can do better. Numerous government and independent studies show that whereas there has been steady progress in social provision – state service delivery programmes aimed at improving people’s lives – there has been slower progress in transforming the economy, with the increasing threat of reversing the gains of the past 20 years. Some of these studies have shown that the government has made greater progress in areas where it acts alone to bring about change or delivery. For instance, on health and education, the 2011 Census shows that access to education, health and housing has improved – however, the quality of the services remains a challenge. The ANC is quite aware that even as access has widened, these services have not reached everybody. So, if you look at an ANC-led government acting alone to bring about a better life for all, you can see steady, albeit insufficient, progress. Undoubtedly, in so far as economic transformation is concerned, private capital has not been a reliable partner for social justice and redress. Due to the ANC being the governing party, there is a tendency in the mainstream media and discourse to conflate the problems of the ANC with those of society. The consequence of this is the thought that the ANC causes societal problems. But this kind of thinking is simplistic, criminal and dishonest. It is against this background that we have seen the emergence of EFF and Agang. While Agang is showing signs of early fatigue, providing no real policy alternatives, it remains to be seen how they will convince their Western backers they are the real deal. EFF, on the other hand, is made up of former members of the ANC, who are reckless, bitter, arrogant populists, driven by an inflated sense of demagoguery. Their agenda is founded on lies and misinformation about the ANC. They further perpetuate the lie that the ANC has abandoned the poor and the working class, when in fact the ANC has reaffirmed the working class as one of the principal motive forces for change. Economic resolutions agitate for the sharing of wealth and income at the productive level. The ANC has a long and rich history of fighting and conducting progressive struggles that are pro-poor. An example of this is the introduction of the National Health Insurance scheme to increase access to health care. The urgent situation of youth unemployment and social exclusion as experienced by the majority is what gives rise to the populism and adventurism behind EFF, The effect of this is that the genuine concerns and struggles of the people are hijacked to serve narrow political party interests and personal careers. Some of these opportunistic political elements will appropriate symbols of the ANC such as slogans, policies, colours, songs, traditions and even historical figures to pose as real representatives of the people. The ANC and its leagues genuinely embrace the principles of political plurality and fair competition. But the ANC will defend itself from unfair attacks. EFF is yet to display originality in thought and articulation. All we have seen is a charade characterised by conspicuous consumption, a power trip that has nothing to do with the improvement of the lives of the people but is mainly concerned with the personal fortunes of a group of men. The planning trajectory as embraced by the ANC government has been useful in terms of diagnosing problems and setting the long- term vision. Some of the policy interventions are useful and can be implemented, while robust and necessary debates continue on others. Even so-called radical policy will have to be responsible policy. Since Stellenbosch 2002, the ANC has strengthened the state sector through among others, the state owned enterprises. Polokwane and Mangaung placed further emphasis on this line of action and suggested extra measures to build a strong, capable developmental state. To build a large state sector is an involved process. China has built its state sector over two generations and today its economic reform has lasted 36 years and is still unfolding. It is laughable that the EFF circus is propagating for the scrapping of the tender system. Perhaps the fact that it does not benefit them any more makes it unworkable. Not only does the ANC want to provide a better life for all, it also wants to reduce the cost of living in relation to health, transport, education and core food supplies. To do so, there needs to be a comprehensive social protection programme co-existing with an interventionist state that urges both private and public capital to play a transformative role. Like in Scandinavian models, it is possible to achieve lofty ideals such as full employment, a better life for all, a strong state and a thriving economy. Internal democracy and vibrant debate in the ANC are still very much alive. Freedom and the burden history has placed on the ANC means that at times, we exhibit both bad and good characteristics. The effort to manage these characteristics is the mainstay of the ANC’s unity. That the problems of our people are real, dire and urgent is something of which the ANC is conscious. We are hard at work to address these issues. But, as democracy would permit, the pseudo-revolutionaries in red Gucci berets are on stage peddling the lie that they would bring change overnight. The ANC understands the challenges of a systematic approach with a revolutionary movement at the helm. We are imbued in rich history and tradition and we have a better understanding of the balance of forces required to bring real change. * Lebogang Maile Gauteng Provincial ANC Youth League (ANCYL) Chairperson.
Posted on: Mon, 22 Jul 2013 06:23:56 +0000
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