The battle lines have been drawn ahead of the upcoming national elections, the Congress of South African Trade Unions said on Thursday.
One the one side, the alliance partner to the African National Congress said, was the ”minority elitist” grouping hell-bent on destroying the ANC.
It counted the Democratic Alliance and the new Congress of the People among this group.
On the other was a ”people’s movement which enjoys moral credibility with an impeccable and unmatched track record of struggle credentials”, Cosatu said in a statement.
The trade union federation said the April 22 poll was ”as important as the 1994 elections”.
While it was certain of an ANC victory it cautioned against ”complacency and over-confidence”.
An ANC victory would cement the gains achieved by Cosatu after the ruling party’s 52nd national conference in Polokwane.
The ”minority elitist” grouping was traditionally led by the DA, but was now accompanied by ”dissidents who left the ANC”, Cosatu said.
”Both are implacably opposed to the demands of workers for decent jobs, better wages, an end to casualisation and labour brokers and the DA wants to make it even easier to fire workers,” it claimed.
It acknowledged that one obstacle to the ruling party’s victory was the ”small degree of despondency” caused by a lack of service delivery.
”There is a degree of disappointed expectations within the working class that must not be ignored. Certain communities are very angry at real and perceived lack of service delivery.
”The message ‘nothing has changed’ since 1994, untrue as it is, certainly is a formidable challenge.”
Cosatu said it would release its shop stewards, leaders and organisers to campaign for the ruling party.
It congratulated four Cosatu leaders who featured on the ANC’s national candidate list — Cosatu national treasurer Alinah Rantsolase, NUM deputy president Crosby Moni, SA Democratic Teacher’s Union general secretary Thulas Nxesi and Nehawu president Noluthando Mayende-Sibiya.
Cosatu saw itself as part of a team managing the transition to the new administration, which they wanted headed by ANC president Jacob Zuma.
The union federation expressed concern over the ”wide gulf” that remained between the ANC and the current government.
It came to this conclusion after it studied President Kgalema Motlanthe’s State of the Nation address, Finance Minister Trevor Manuel’s budget speech and the ANC’s election manifesto.
”It is clear that there has been no systematic process of integrating the policies and priorities agreed at Polokwane, let alone the elections manifesto, into government programmes,” it said.
This ”strongly underlines” the need for the ANC it its alliance partners to elaborate a detailed five-year programme for the government.
”The alternative is to allow government to continue charting its own course.”
It said the government would not of its own accord implement the ANC’s mandate.
Cosatu’s central executive committee also called on the president to sign the controversial Broadcast Amendment Bill into law. The Bill makes it possible for Parliament to sack either individuals on the SABC board or the whole board.
After Motlanthe recently refused to sign it into law, questioning its constitutionality, it was amended to include a ”proper enquiry by Parliament” before a decision to remove any board members was taken. – Sapa