Ebrahim Harvey
Crossfire
The truth was the biggest casualty in the exchange between Howard Barrell’s column (Over a Barrel, August 27 to September 2), in which he attacked South African Communist Party general secretary Blade Nzimande’s anti-privatisation views, and the SACP deputy general secretary Jeremy Cronin’s Crossfire reply (“Should we let Barrell’s claptrap go?”, September 3 to 9). The truth lies somewhere between and beneath this exchange.
It’s obvious Barrell has not done his homework on privatisation around the world over the past two decades. But had he been confronted with irrefutable evidence that it has not worked, which is the case, he would, hard-nosed advocate of capitalist market forces that he is, most likely argue against such results.
But before we leave Barrell to his own devices, let us give him some credit. He certainly does keep the alliance leaders on their toes with sharp and shrewd questioning and arguments. At least we know where we stand with Barrell.
We cannot say the same of Cronin’s reply. Predictably, he almost immediately becomes defensive, stating that Barrell “tries to sow division by misrepresenting the real debates within the government, African National Congress, and the broader ANC/SACP/Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) alliance”.
Just like the National Party used to see communists behind every protest, Cronin sees divisive demons behind every criticism of the party and its role within the alliance.
Cronin, and the alliance leadership, should stick to debating the real issues and not divert or dilute such attention when the party faces criticism. Two major issues after the recent election made it clear that serious economic policy differences exist within the alliance.
Firstly, the impending privatisation of Transnet and other parastatals which threatened the jobs of thousands and had to be postponed due to workers’ protests.
Secondly, the ongoing, and unresolved, public sector wage dispute which brought to a head the inevitable clash between the unions and the government.
The policy imperatives which spurred mass action on both issues can, in the final analysis, be traced to the government’s growth, employment and redistribution (Gear) fiscal deficit-driven policies.
It is these events which gave rise to and reinforce existing differences within the alliance – not Barrell or the left outside of the alliance.
In quoting President Thabo Mbeki on the market as the “great leveller”, Cronin fails to see that it is indeed Gear which is the “great leveller”. It is under the auspices of Gear that the “lean and mean” vision of the state takes effect since it is the same market forces which compel privatisation of state assets.
With privatisation of parastatals is the state not “vacating maximum space to the market”? How can Cronin accuse Barrell of being in love (a poetic slip?) with a “lean and mean” state and Gear when it is the ANC-led government which embraced Gear long before Barrell had anything to say?
Cronin is excessive in trying to cover up gaping holes within the alliance. Instead of dealing with the fundamental problem of the government’s budgetary constraints on wage negotiations, he calls Minister of Public Service and Administration Geraldine Fraser-Moleketi, an SACP central committee member, a “tough negotiator”.
He fails to see that it is not the toughness of the minister but the macro- economic constraints of Gear, which is why the minister has repeatedly stated that the government cannot improve upon its wage offer.
Cronin misconstrues what happened with the intended privatisation of Transnet. He claims Minister of Public Enterprises Jeff Radebe, also an SACP central committee member, “intervened publicly to put a halt to wild speculation about mass retrenchments and privatisation in Transnet”.
What “wild speculation” is he talking about when it’s a fact that if Transnet is privatised job losses will be inevitable? He casts Radebe in the role of a hero when in fact it was the workers’ show of strength which compelled the minister to temporarily halt moves to privatise.
Cronin must be reminded that the SACP was silent when these workers took to the streets and only made a press statement days later, after a newspaper questioned its silence. Nzimande then stated that the party “cannot idly stand by while workers are thrown on the streets”.
Because of the divide which the SACP tries to straddle between its own anti- privatisation ideological orientation and having to toe the ANC party line in Parliament, it introduces a curious phrase (ideologically driven privatisation) in an attempt to rescue the party from the damaging consequences of privatisation, such as job losses.
However, this phrase cannot diminish the negative effects of privatisation or excuse the SACP or the ANC-led government from these effects. Privatisation is privatisation.