Andy Duffy
Shepherd Mdladlana is duty-bound to say he will serve wherever the African National Congress deploys him. But the Ministry of Labour?
Tito Mboweni, a flamboyant, popularist politician was always going to be a hard act to follow – more so for Mdladlana, who until now has preferred operating out of the limelight.
Mboweni, now anointed the next governor of the Reserve Bank, has also already done most of the glory stuff at the ministry, such as the Labour Relations Act. It falls to Mdladlana to steer the employment equity and skills development Bills through Parliament.
But then he is largely following the map Mboweni has drawn up. Even the potentially exciting jobs summit has been left in the hands of Minister of Trade and Industry Alec Erwin.
In effect, Mdladlana is a caretaker until the next election – a responsibility that all but ends when Parliament goes into recess in September. “I’ll just be tightening and finishing off the programme started by Tito,” Mdladlana says. “I’m not expecting anything new to come up.”
Still, there has to be some reason why Deputy President Thabo Mbeki surprised everyone, not least Mdladlana, by appointing the 46-year- old as Mboweni’s successor.
The obvious answer is that Mdladlana is seen as stable, loyal and disciplined; someone unlikely to rock Mbeki’s boat. Perhaps Mdladlana represents a valuable ally in the Western Cape ANC- he is chair of the party’s peninsula region.
Maybe Mbeki is also looking to strengthen his ties with the ANC’s alliance partners. Mdladlana is a member of the South African Communist Party and came into Parliament in 1994 on a labour ticket.
Or perhaps Mdladlana is seen as a potential successor to Minister of Education Sibusiso Bengu – very likely Mdladlana’s favourite explanation.
Mdladlana has education running through his veins. He was a teacher for 22 years, a founder of the South African Democratic Teachers’ Union (Sadtu), and is now one of the most influential politicians in the field – someone Bengu has always sought to have on his side. And yes, he would jump at it if Bengu’s position came up next year.
It’s a big “if”, of course: suitability for a portfolio is rarely the determining factor in getting it.
“I would have wanted education, but it’s not a choice,” he adds. “You have to be prepared to be a utility.”
Two weeks ago a relative unknown, Mdladlana has been the subject of numerous press profiles since his appointment.
His background is well-documented: a BA in education and Xhosa from Unisa; years spent as a teacher and then principal in Guguletu and New Crossroads.
Mdladlana was drawn into active politics in August 1976, when the murderous events of Soweto were repeated in Cape Town.
“We had always been very professional in our approach – grievances could take a year to get to the top,” he says. “My principal used to say, `Be careful of biting the hand that feeds you.'”
But the government’s insistence on teaching in Afrikaans was a political gesture, he adds, “that needed a political reaction. That [August 1976] was the turning point for me.”
In the 1980s Mdladlana became a prominent player in mobilising teachers and parents, playing an active role in teachers’ unions. He drove through Sadtu’s creation in 1990 and then headed it for four years, until he went up to Parliament.
Portrayed as forceful, short-tempered, arrogant and obstinate (religious and charming too), Mdladlana has aroused most concern within business.
It describes him as an “unknown quantity”, but believes that it should be worried – given Mdladlana’s background.
The Democratic Party also dislikes him, mainly, it seems, for his ability to upset leader Tony Leon with his street-fighting style of debate.
But Mdladlana does not come across as someone bound by dogma to either labour or to the SACP.
The recent clash between Sadtu and the education ministry Mdadlana blames in part on the union’s failure to consult its members and negotiate properly.
“You don’t just walk out of negotiations at the drop of a pin,” he says.
Forced retrenchments among teachers will still have to be addressed, Mdladlana adds – for all the reasons Bengu and his minions have previously tabled.
Mdladlana also does not stand alongside those within labour or the SACP who pan the government’s growth, employment and redistribution strategy (Gear).
In fact, he says, he is quite happy with it and the alliance should be too. He would also much prefer if the leaders of the alliance drew closer together, rather than battling it out in public.
“The ANC leads the alliance and I don’t see why people are wavering. All of us who are MPs of the ANC have agreed to abide by the rules and objectives of the ANC.
“There is nothing that I’m confused about. Gear is government policy. I stick to what we’ve agreed to do.”
Doubtless it’s that sort of stance that has endeared Mdladlana to the deputy president. He takes his place in the Cabinet this weekend.
Born: 1952 in Keiskamahoek, Eastern Cape
Defining characteristics: Forceful, disciplined, loyal
Favourite people: The president and the deputy president
Least favourite people: People who argue
Likely to say: “Comrade, can I have Education instead”
Least likely to say: “Sometimes, you know, Tony Leon has got a point”