South Africa

ACTION PLAN

ANC NEC moves to overhaul key policies after State Capture Commission’s ‘unsettling’ findings

ANC NEC moves to overhaul key policies after State Capture Commission’s ‘unsettling’ findings
From left: South African coins. (Photo: Waldo Swiegers / Bloomberg via Getty Images) | Community members and relatives of the 21 teenagers who died at the Enyobeni tavern in Scenery Park hold a night vigil on 28 June 2022 in East London, South Africa. (Photo: Gallo Images / Die Burger / Lulama Zenzile) | Unsplash | Caversham Road in Pinetown, Durban, South Africa, following heavy flooding. (Photo: Gallo Images / Darren Stewart) | President Cyril Ramaphosa receives the final Zondo report on 22 June 2022 in Pretoria, South Africa. (Photo: Gallo Images / Alet Pretorius)

The ANC’s National Executive Committee has decided to take immediate action to revamp a number of its policies, including the one on cadre deployment. This is in reaction to the final report of the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture, which points to a number of the party’s flaws.

The ANC is at a crossroads as it looks to revamp its policies in regards to cadre deployment, party funding, organisational discipline and accountability, as well as parliamentary oversight. 

The party’s highest decision-making structure, the National Executive Committee (NEC) has taken a decision that all its leaders, current and former, as well as its members who were mentioned in the State Capture report, must immediately present themselves to the party’s Integrity Commission. This stems from the action plan presented by the task team led by ANC bigwig Jeff Radebe at a virtual sitting of the NEC over the weekend. 

“The NEC noted that the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture has now submitted its final report. While detailing the nature, extent and scope of State Capture, the report also makes critical findings about our movement and government, and individual members of the African National Congress.  

“The NEC noted that some of the observations and findings are indeed unsettling, but vows that the movement will honestly and openly deal with all aspects of the commission’s report. This should strengthen the renewal of the movement to identify shortcomings and take the necessary steps to address them,” the party said in a statement on Tuesday evening. 

This action plan comes after the scathing final instalment of the report identified a number of top ANC officials, including President Cyril Ramaphosa, as having dragged their feet in dealing with State Capture.  

 

The State Capture report states that former Free State MEC Mosebenzi Zwane, former Minister Nomvula Mokonyane, former president Jacob Zuma and other ministers had abused their power to benefit the Gupta family and were complicit in State Capture.  

The report found that cadre deployment played a significant part in enabling State Capture and led to the DA compiling a court application to have cadre deployment declared unlawful and unconstitutional. The ANC will be opposing the matter.

Read  in Daily Maverick: Ramaphosa seeks solutions to power crisis outside of Eskom following backlash against the party over rolling blackouts 

The NEC meeting also discussed the energy security crisis facing South Africa, and the devastating impact of load shedding on households, communities, businesses and national prospects for economic growth. The NEC decided to take a number of steps to ensure immediate and long-term solutions.  

The party wants power utility Eskom to:

  • Increase maintenance and improve the availability of existing supply;
  • Acquire appropriate skills and experienced mentors; and
  • Facilitate private investment in new generation capacity.

Eskom will have to speed up the repurposing of power stations with alternative energy sources, accelerate the procurement of battery storage, empower municipalities to procure additional electricity, and encourage businesses and households to invest in renewable energy.

 

 

 

“Whilst recognising the need to protect the stability of the national electricity grid through load shedding measures, the NEC called for this to be confined to lower stages and to be phased out in the medium to long term. The NEC called on the government and Eskom to ensure continuous communication and engagement with communities affected by load shedding and load reduction.  

“The NEC also called on the government to act decisively in investigating and acting on reports of sabotage of the country’s generation and distribution infrastructure. Furthermore, the NEC called for a campaign against illegal connections to eliminate load reduction, which is placing an added burden on communities, and called on all South Africans to join energy-saving measures to alleviate stress on the national grid,” the party said in the statement. 

South Africans have been hit by Stage 6 load shedding, leaving them without power for hours at a stretch.

While ageing infrastructure continues to be the main reason for the power outages, the strike by Eskom workers has also put a severe strain on the utility’s operations. 

After rigorous negotiations, an agreement with Solidarity, the National Union of Mineworkers and the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa was reached at the Central Bargaining Forum on Tuesday afternoon. 

The one-year 7% wage increase was signed by the unions, which means all Eskom workers are expected to be back at work. DM

Gallery

Comments - Please in order to comment.

  • Sydney Kaye says:

    A year will pass very quickly and then they will be back for more, knowing they have the power to extort. A competent management (Ho Ho) would prepare for it.

  • Luan Sml says:

    When I read that “The ANC NEC calls on the government to…” I do hope that they are standing in front of a very big mirror and pointing a finger at their reflections, because they are one and the same “ruling party” as they always relish telling us mere cirizens!
    Talk about passing the buck!

  • Karl Sittlinger says:

    As long as the ANC cannot admit that cadre deployment and BEE are the main reason for our economic decay and grandscale theft and corruption, I see little hope.

  • Teresa Thomson says:

    I think the 7% increase is disgraceful. The union talks about treating their workers like slaves by only offering a 1.5% increase last year. What about the private sector? Some employees haven’t received an increase in 3 years, and others have been retrenched. Government must govern, leave it to business to run businesses. Sell off all state assets to private companies now, while they still have any value.

  • Alley Cat says:

    BLAH BLAH BLAH AND MORE BLAH!! Believe it when I see it?? Then why are they opposing the application by the DA to have cadre deployment declared unlawful and unconstitutional??

  • Brian Cotter says:

    This is a one year agreement. Same again next year?

  • Confucious Says says:

    A loot-a continua!

  • Hermann Funk says:

    The ANC has been great in promises, very effective in stealing and ineffective in governing. Don’t expect any change. The party is doomed. “ANC: Death party walking.”

  • Hermann Funk says:

    The ANC has been great in promises, very effective in stealing and ineffective in governing. Don’t expect any change. The party is doomed. “ANC: Dead party walking.”

  • Glyn Morgan says:

    Viva Zondo! For his cadre-busting commission. It lit a fire under the ANC! Viva DA for taking the ANC to court for cadre deployment. It got the ANC very nervous, now hopefully getting rid of CD! But When!?!?

  • Johan Buys says:

    The not so funny part about the comments that loadshredding is due to ageing plants is that time does not creep up on you and one day you suddenly realize that your power station is now 40y old and the replacement will take 5y to build (if you don’t mess up like Eskom has done on every plant since 1947). These fools have been running the show for 27 years. How do plants age quickly?

  • Paula Savva says:

    It is blatantly clear that our President has no power and all power rests with the NEC of the ANC, which is surely illegal.

  • Vijay Pillay says:

    The ANC NEC’s response to the energy crisis is a depressing read :
    ‘Eskom will have to speed up the repurposing of power stations with alternative energy sources, accelerate the procurement of battery storage, empower municipalities to procure additional electricity (from non-Eskom sources?), and encourage businesses and households to invest in renewable energy (again from non-Eskom souces?)’ Does the NEC expect Eskom to actively support its competitors? Not going to happen.

    “Whilst recognising the need to protect the stability of the national electricity grid through load shedding measures, the NEC called for this to be confined to lower stages and to be phased out in the medium to long term.” Does the NEC actually think that Eskom is implementing load shedding at a stage that is higher than is absolutely necessary? The NEC wants load shedding to be phased out in the medium to long term. Don’t we all want the same since 2008!

  • Hilary Morris says:

    Oh dear Lord, spare us the hypocrisy. The only appropriate response to the NEC blinding insight that perhaps the ANC may have problems and that the naughty comrades should present themselves to the “Integrity” committee, where, no doubt, a jolly party will be held, is a rolling of the eye-balls and a sighing “Oh, puleeze”. Seriously, do even they believe it?

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