The removal of Langa Zita, the South African Communist Party’s national coordinator, from the party’s top leadership is seen as more revealing of the party’s newfound assertiveness than the ousting of government ministers Jeff Radebe and Essop Pahad.
”At last we have a red central committee,” said one communist at the party’s 11th national congress in Rustenburg this week.
Party members say Zita, a once-vocal opponent of the government’s growth, employment and redistribution (Gear) strategy, has radically altered his views since moving to Parliament as an MP a few years ago.
”Langa was one of us, one of the first to oppose Gear. He dutifully attended all the central committee meetings and engaged the party — unlike some of the ministers,” said one communist. ”But since he left for Parliament he has advocated the dominant African Nationa Congress view, that of socialism in another 150 years.”
Some members do consider Zita’s removal from the central committee ”a bit unfair”. ”Radebe and Pahad have not changed, but Zita has. The congress was not prepared to forgive him, despite his attempts to engage,” said one member.
Members insist the new makeup of the central committee does not reflect anti-government sentiment, as has been widely reported.
They point out that it includes eight MECs and that the second-highest number of votes went to Minister of Water Affairs and Forestry Ronnie Kasrils.
The fact that Willie Madisha, president of the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu), received the highest tally of votes was an expression of support for the labour federation leader’s principled socialist stance against privatisation, they say.
A perceived commitment to communist principles and to the party appears to have swung the elections. This is what lay behind the election of Robben Island veteran and SACP stalwart George Mashamba and his wife Joyce, Limpopo’s education MEC.
Mashamba is believed to have taken on the ANC’s national leadership years ago when he challenged Ngoako Ramatlhodi for the ruling party’s chairmanship in then Northern Province. He won, but local ANC structures prevented him from taking up the premiership.
Members said the biggest blow to delegates at the congress was the announcement by Thenjiwe Mtintso, the ANC’s deputy secretary general and an SACP central committee member, that she was unavailable for re-election. The fiery former black consciousness leader is said to be in poor health.
Mtintso, widely hailed by SACP members as one of the most committed communists in the party, is seen as a hero for taking on Nelson Mandela about Gear at the last party congress in 1998.
”When she told us she was not available, it was like someone announced your mother’s funeral,” said one communist.
In line with its new assertiveness, the SACP resolved to establish new mechanisms to make better use of members in other organisations to promote the party’s policy. These mechanisms would also try to rein in members ”deployed” in government.
Party sources say certain government ministers took cover behind the SACP’s constitution at the congress commission that discussed the issue. The constitution stipulates that members must adhere to the rules of other bodies in which they serve.
A minority of delegates said that members should not be allowed to serve in ANC structures, which resurrected a long-running debate on dual membership.
The issue resurfaced last year when the SACP’s Blade Nzimande and Jeremy Cronin, who also serve on the ANC’s national executive, were lambasted by the ruling party for attacking the government’s privatisation plans.
The ANC made the point that its members should raise disagreements over party policy within the organisation’s structures before going public. SACP sources said the ANC had again raised the issue at the alliance’s summit earlier this year.
The SACP conference also called for the formation of an alliance task team to deal with privatisation.