Taking COSATU Today Forward, 18 July 2022 #MandelaDay
Norman Mampane
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#2022YearofWorkersParliament #HambaKahleJessieDuarte #MandelaDay #GenderEquality #Back2Basics #JoinCOSATUNow #ClassConsciousness |
Taking COSATU Today Forward
‘Whoever sides with the revolutionary people in deed as well as in word is a revolutionary in the full sense’-Maoo
Our side of the story
Monday, 18 July 2022
‘Deepen
the Back to Basics Campaign, Consolidate the Struggle for the NDR and Advance the Struggle for Socialism’
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Contents
- Workers Parliament: Back to Basics!
- NEHAWU is angered by the decision of National Department of Health to demote two senior officials implicated in Digital Vibes Scandal
- South Africa
- COSATU mourns the death of ANC Deputy Secretary General Cde Jessie Duarte
- NEHAWU mourns the passing of Comrade Jessie Duarte
- SACP statement of heartfelt condolences on the passing away of ANC Deputy Secretary General Comrade Yasmin “Jessie” Duarte
- DENOSA Limpopo statement on raiding of Limpopo Department of Health offices by the Hawks
- International-Workers’ Solidarity!
- ILO Director-General welcomes BRICS commitment to green jobs, skills development, workers’ protection
Workers’ Parliament-Back2Basics
NEHAWU is angered by the decision of National Department of Health to demote two senior officials implicated in Digital Vibes Scandal
Zola Saphetha, NEHAWU General Secretary, July 17, 2022
The National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union [NEHAWU] is angered by the decision of the National Department of Health to demote senior two officials implicated in the Digital Vibes scandal after having been found guilty by a disciplinary hearing.
As NEHAWU, we are vehemently opposed to this shocking decision to demote the two officials [Deputy Director General and Chief Director] who were found guilty by the disciplinary hearing following the digital vibes scandal which costs taxpayers millions of rands. We expected the department to send a clear message by taking a clear corrective measure as a sign that the department does not tolerate any acts of gross misconduct, corruption and mismanagement of public resources.
We are dismayed that the department can act in such a manner by retaining in their employ the two individuals that have been found guilty in a scandal that not only embarrassed and brought the department in disrepute, but also exposed the rot and malfeasance that had occurred at the peak of COVID-19 when the country needed at its disposal every available resource to fight against COVID-19.
What infuriates us even more is that the department had assured the public that all those implicated and found to have committed wrong would be dealt with accordingly, however the opposite instead has occurred with this decision to demote the two senior officials. This is only a slap in the wrist for the officials and does not send a strong message to society about clean governance and administration of public resources.
Many of our members in the public service in particular the department of health have been charged and dismissed on ridiculous charges that are not even close to this scale of the Digital Vibes corruption scandal yet the department has not acted with the same vigour that it has done on our members.
As NEHAWU, we call on the department to be decisive and act accordingly against the two senior officials found guilty by a disciplinary hearing in the matter relating to the digital vibes corruption scandal.
Lastly, we call on law enforcement agencies to move with speed in prosecuting all those involved in the digital vibes scandal.
END
Issued by NEHAWU Secretariat
South Africa
COSATU mourns the death of ANC Deputy Secretary General Cde Jessie Duarte
Sizwe Pamla, Cosatu National Spokesperson, 17 July 2022
The Congress of South African Trade Unions is deeply saddened to learn of the passing of ANC Deputy Secretary General Cde Jessie Duarte. We send our heartfelt condolences to the ANC, her family, colleagues, and friends.
Cde Jessie Duarte served the ANC with merit and aplomb at many levels. Her many years of activism saw her rise from building the then Federation of Transvaal Women, to being active in the United Democratic Front, and working with the late Beyers Naude to empower young people with educational opportunities; to rising to the most senior ranks in the liberation movement and the democratic government.
In her years as national leader in the ANC she worked very closely with the Federation to unite the Alliance and keep it focused on its work and commitments to the people despite challenges. She believed in and strove to build a strong Alliance.
She was also a great proponent and champion of women holding leadership positions in the movement and society in general. She despised racism ad tribalism and did not shy away from calling his own comrades and organisation if she detected any hint of these demons in their conduct. She was not afraid to say exactly how she felt on an issue.
The only way for the Alliance to hour Cde Jessie is to work on its unity and in building a non-racial movement and country that empowers women across society.
We will forever remember her as a champion of women empowerment, solid advocate for social justice and a formidable leader of our movement.
May her soul rest in peace!
Issued by COSATU
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NEHAWU mourns the passing of Comrade Jessie Duarte
Zola Saphetha, NEHAWU General Secretary, July 7, 2022
The National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union (NEHAWU) has learnt with shock and sadness of the untimely passing of African National Congress [ANC] Deputy Secretary General, Comrade Jessie Duarte.
The national union sends heartfelt condolences to her family, ANC, friends and comrades in the Mass Democratic Movement (MDM) structures. We wish her family strength during this moment.
Comrade Duarte will forever be remembered for her commitment, devotion and dedication to the congress movement and the people of South Africa.
Her contribution to the struggle against the apartheid to create a non-racial, non-sexist and democratic South Africa will forever be etched in the hearts of our people.
Comrade Duarte was an internationalist who ascribed to the values of a just peaceful world and advocated for international solidarity with the oppressed people of the world.
She was also a gender activist who fought for the rights of women in the congress movement and society at large. Her passing should prompt all of us to continue the fight for women’s right and fight the scourge of patriarchy and gender inequalities.
NEHAWU dips its banner at the passing of this exceptional leader.
Rest in Peace Comrade Jessie Duarte.
END
Issued by NEHAWU Secretariat
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17 July 2022
The South African Communist Party (SACP) conveys its message of deepest condolences to the family of ANC Deputy Secretary General, Comrade Yasmin “Jessie” Duarte, who passed away in the early hours this morning, Sunday 17 July 2022.
The SACP also sends heartfelt condolences to the ANC, which she served diligently in various roles over the years, as well as the entire Alliance, the South African liberation movement and people at large.
Comrade Jessie, as she was fondly known, devoted her life to the South African struggle for liberation and social emancipation, the national democratic revolution. Spending her young life under the inspirational tutelage of some of our iconic liberation stalwarts such as Comrade Albertina Sisulu, Comrade Jessie went on to inspire more women in South Africa and across the African continent and beyond, to remain resolute in the struggle for women emancipation, along with the emancipation of all oppressed people. Her contribution to the movement thus goes back to the people’s struggles against apartheid, for a just, non-racial, and non-sexist society.
She served on the National Executive Committee of the ANC since the ANC’s 51st National Conference in 2002 and had been serving the ANC as Deputy Secretary General since the 53rd National Conference in 2012.
The Alliance as a whole has suffered irreplicable loss in Comrade Jessie’s demise. A while ago, Comrade Jessie revived her membership of the SACP and was a member of the SACP in good standing at the time of her passing. The Party, like the ANC, will be poorer without her.
Not only was Comrade Jessie the ANC Deputy Secretary General, but she was also a member of the Alliance Secretariat. She convened and chaired the meetings of the Alliance Secretariat, dealing with difficult questions of our time, like the deadly COVID-19 pandemic. She also convened the meeting of the Alliance Political Council and gave leadership guidance to its drafting team. Comrade Jessie played a central role in these capacities, steering the Alliance Secretariat meetings that produced the Alliance's COVID-19 Response Framework and the effort to save public entities that were ravaged by state capture.
In tribute to Comrade Jessie Duarte, the SACP calls for the intensification of the struggle against patriarchy, one of the major features of capitalist society, a struggle Comrade Jessie was passionate about. The Alliance and the entire progressive movement have the task of deepening the struggle against neoliberalism and all its inherent features. In addition to fighting against neoliberalism, we must continue reviving our state-owned entities, which were ravaged by both the forces of neoliberalism and state capture, while building more state capacity for the development of our country. Neither the neoliberal agents nor the state capture looters will lead our country out of the structural capitalist crises faced by the working-class and poor.
Coming out of its 15th National Congress, the SACP will make its contribution to the struggle to end patriarchy and defend the gains of the liberation movement. The SACP commits itself to organise the people for working-class power and for the further development of our society, as well as for an end to the exploitation and subjugation of one by another.
ISSUED BY THE SOUTH AFRICAN COMMUNIST PARTY | SACP
EST. 1921 AS THE COMMUNIST PARTY OF SOUTH AFRICA | CPSA
1921–2021: 100 YEARS OF UNBROKEN STRUGGLE
PUT PEOPLE BEFORE PROFIT
SOCIALISM IS THE FUTURE—BUILD IT NOW!
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DENOSA Limpopo statement on raiding of Limpopo Department of Health offices by the Hawks
13 July 2022
POLOKWANE - The Democratic Nursing Organisation of South Africa (DENOSA) in Limpopo welcomes the raiding of the Provincial Department of Health offices in Polokwane by Hawks in relationship to recommendations by both SIU and Public Protector reports.
We hope the raid is a step in the right direction in terms of identifying officials implicated in corrupt activities related to procedurement of PPEs in a fight against COVID-19 in addition to three already fingered in the two reports
As the organisation, we are waiting patiently to see the arrest and prosecution of implicated officials.
We hope that the Hawks will accelerate their investigation, leave no stone unturned and arrest all the implicated officials.
The raiding confirms government's stand in a fight against corruption which negatively affects service delivery, exposed our members at risk during the pandemic and deny our communities access to basic health services in the province which is predominantly rural.
END.
Issued by the Democratic Nursing Organisation of South Africa (DENOSA) in Limpopo.
For more information, contact:
Jacob Molepo,Provincial Secretary.
Mobile: 0725764979
Lesiba Monyaki, Provincial Chairperson.
Mobile : 0725782753
International-Solidarity
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15 July 2022
Guy Ryder warned the BRICS Labour and Employment Ministers, from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, of a growing risk of further labour market deterioration in 2022.
GENEVA (ILO News) – The Director-General
of the International Labour Organization (ILO), Guy Ryder, has welcomed the commitment by the Labour and Employment Ministers (LEMM) of the BRICS countries to promote green employment, invest in skills development and protect workers in new forms of employment.
“Multiple global crises are unfolding in the world. This, in addition to increasing inequalities between and within countries, hampers more than ever our efforts to make labour markets more inclusive, sustainable and resilient,” said Ryder in his remarks to
the ministers from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.
Amid “growing risks of a further deterioration in labour markets over the course of 2022,” Ryder told the ministers that, “promoting green employment is key for addressing climate change and accelerating green, low-carbon sustainable development.”
“Investing in skills development for a resilient recovery and to make workers future-ready in the face of digitalization, demographic shifts and decarbonization is equally imperative,” emphasized Ryder, who also underlined the importance of “supporting workers
in new forms of employment by providing adequate social protection, actively promoting appropriate regulation.”
The LEMM
Declaration ,
issued at the end of the Ministers’ meeting, which took place on 14 July in Beijing, China, stresses that “the global labour market is still under the shadow of the COVID-19 pandemic, combined with current and future challenges caused by climate change, technological
transition and demographic shifts”.
The declaration identifies three priorities for labour and employment policy responses to the pandemic: promoting green jobs for sustainable development, developing skills for a resilient recovery and protecting workers’ rights in new forms of employment.
In their declaration the BRICS Ministers “commit to acquire a deeper understanding of green jobs, adopt policy measures for employment and human resources development that meet the needs of green growth, low-carbon and sustainable development together with
other government agencies and social partners,” and to take advantage of “the triple benefits of mitigating and adapting to climate change with a just transition for all.”
The declaration also “advocate[s for] greater inter-ministerial coordination as well as government policy support to encourage companies to increase investment in skills development, expand apprenticeship programs, improve the quality and scope of work-based
learning, and promote sustainable business development.”
Recalling the 2019
ILO Centenary Declaration for the Future of Work ,
the LEMM Declaration underlines the importance of promoting a “human-centred approach to shape the future of work and protect the rights of workers in new forms of employment.”
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Norman Mampane (Shopsteward Editor)
Congress of South African Trade Unions
110 Jorissen Cnr Simmonds Street, Braamfontein, 2017
P.O.Box 1019, Johannesburg, 2000, South Africa
Tel: +27 11 339-4911 Direct line: 010 219-1348