Cosatu and SACP’s grievances are legitimate, says analyst

Nationwide marches yesterday by Cosatu and the SA Communist Party (SACP) were more than a factional battle for the soul of the ANC – they were about genuine issues that affect the whole country.

They were also the start of a mass mobilisation against President Jacob Zuma in the run-up to the ANC’s electoral conference in December, analysts said.

And they gave Zuma a bitter taste of his own medicine, which he dished out to Thabo Mbeki in 2007 by mobilising the workers’ movements, which eventually led to his succession to the post of ANC president. So, Zuma “should not cry” about the agitation in the streets, a political analyst has said.

Ebrahim Fakir, programmes director at the Auwal Socio-Economic Research Institute, recalled that Zuma had subjected Mbeki to the same when he mobilised tripartite alliance structures against the then president at Polokwane in 2007.

According to Fakir, it was therefore disingenuous of Zuma supporters to dismiss yesterday’s nationwide marches, organised by Cosatu, as factional, because they were about genuine problems.

“It is easy to say that the marches were not about substantive issues, but no one must underestimate the impact of state capture. The call for Zuma to step down is appropriate and Cosatu is entitled to voice out how they feel about him,” Fakir said.

Fakir’s statement came as Cosatu and its affiliates, supported by the SACP, took to the streets to voice their opposition to the corruption, state capture and job losses that had occurred under the Zuma government.

The marchers demanded Zuma step down and an end to state capture linked to Zuma’s friends, the Gupta family.

Fakir said the majority of South Africans were impacted by corruption, state capture, job losses and underperformance by the country’s economy under Zuma.

Claims by the Zuma camp that the mobilisation by Cosatu was part of a factional agenda against his anointed candidate, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, held no water.

“We all know that Cosatu is not a delegate structure of the ANC but they did this before when they mobilised against Mbeki. They raise an issue that is factional, of course, but they have been open about their call that Zuma must go,” Fakir said.

When Cosatu used the same tactics against Mbeki, nobody had labelled that as factional, he added.

Cosatu also used the opportunity to resuscitate its old culture of mass mobilisation for workers’ demands around better wages and job losses.

Analyst Andre Duvenhage, from Potchefstroom North-West University campus, said the action was clearly a mobilisation against Zuma and Dlamini-Zuma, who aspires to succeed him.

“This is against Zuma, who is associated with state capture. It is a strong signal to the Zuma group that they are not wanted any more by labour,”said Duvenhage.

Although labour and business did not see eye to eye around the negotiating table, they seemed to agree on the need for Zuma to go, he said.

That many employers released their workers to participate in the protests showed their support for the action.

The labour agenda was no longer only about wages and jobs, but was highly politicised since Cosatu and SACP were part of the tripartite alliance.

“It is interesting that the state should be mediating in labour and business issues, but these two are subtly working together against the state, which indicates a high level of distrust from these components of society against the Zuma government,” he said.