Taking COSATU Today Forward, 5 July 2024
Norman Mampane
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COSATU TODAY #MandelaMonth |
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
Friday, 5 July 2024
COSATU Call Centre Number is 010 219 1342
“Build Working Class Unity for Economic Liberation towards Socialism”
Organize or Starve!
Contents
o Workers Parliament: Back to Basics!
- COSATU Gauteng welcomes the appointment of Cabinet by Premier Panyaza Lesufi
o South Africa
- Parliament needs to crack the whip over delinquent Members of Parliament
- ANC Caucus welcomes the formation of the 7th Administration Executive and stands ready to support & oversee its work
o International-Workers’ Solidarity!
- ITUC General Secretary solidarity visit to Israel
Workers’ Parliament-Back2Basics
COSATU Gauteng welcomes the appointment of Cabinet by Premier Panyaza Lesufi
Louisa Modikwe, COSATU Gauteng Provincial Secretary, 04 July 2024
COSATU in Gauteng welcomes the appointment of MECs of the 7th Provincial Administration and the multi-party government in the province. We commend the bold decision by Premier Panyaza Lesufi to announce his Cabinet after protracted negotiations ultimately saw the hard-to-please Democratic Alliance excluded.
With a mandate from the people of Gauteng, the Government of Provincial Unity that is inclusive of the IFP, Rise Mzansi and the Patriotic Alliance is expected to hit the ground running. COSATU Gauteng will continue to monitor the performance of the MECs and hold them accountable.
The Federation congratulates all the MECs and believes that they will all commit to honouring the Batho-Pele principle and improve service delivery to the citizens of Gauteng.
The workers in this province reaffirm their commitment to defend and fight for the constitutional and labour rights achieved over the years.
COSATU commits to working with government in ensuring that the citizens of the province are the ultimate beneficiaries of this administration.
Issued by COSATU Gauteng
South Africa
Parliament needs to crack the whip over delinquent Members of Parliament
Matthew Parks, COSATU Parliamentary Coordinator, 04 July 2024
The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) demands that Parliament show some moral fortitude and leadership and crack the whip over the increasing numbers of delinquent Members of Parliament (MPs). Legislators have not even received their first salaries yet already four MPs have found time and appetite to flirt with anarchy and juvenile antics.
The Electoral Court has now found an Umkhonto we Sizwe Party (MKP) MP, Mr. Visvin Reddy guilty of incitement to violence during the election campaign. A Democratic Alliance MP, Mr. Renaldo Gouws, as well as another MK MP, Mr. Andile Mngxitama, have been trending on social media with their rantings dripping with hate speech and calls for violence. African National Congress MP, Zizi Kodwa, has been sworn-in despite being on trial for charges of corruption. Parliament in a moment of ignominy now faces the prospect of impeached former Judge John Hlophe being appointed to the Judicial Services Commission to appoint and oversee the judiciary!
South Africa has experienced the devastating consequences of Parliament turning a blind eye towards rascals of dubious moral standing masquerading as public representatives and being allowed to run amok in the Legislature, Government and society. It has been ordinary workers, working class communities and society who have paid the price for this shameful collapse in ethics amongst some of those elected to lead.
Parliament over the years, has been found desperately wanting and gone out of its way to turn a blind eye to the misdemeanours of public representatives. We expect the 7th Parliament to signal a firm break with this tradition of shame. It needs to amend its rules and actively sanction and expel those MPs who cannot be bothered to abide by its code of conduct, let alone the values of the Constitution. Clearly, political parties lack the moral compass to police themselves.
A society that has buried thousands to political violence cannot afford to treat those who sow racism and hate speech with kid gloves. Nor can we afford to equivocate corruption and inexplainable lifestyles of public representatives.
The tasks of MPs are to pass laws and hold government accountable for their implementation. Society should not be expected to tolerate the morally deficient being entrusted with these sacrosanct responsibilities.
South Africans have the right to expect and insist upon the highest ethical and moral standards amongst those elected and privileged to lead.
Issued by COSATU
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ANC Caucus welcomes the formation of the 7th Administration
Executive and stands ready to support & oversee its work
04 July 2024
The Caucus of the African National Congress (ANC) in Parliament welcomes the swearing-in of members of the National Executive by Chief Justice Raymond Zondo on Wednesday, 3 July 2024 thus marking the commencement of the 7th
Administration.
The Caucus further congratulates our members who have been deployed to various responsibilities in government and we stand ready to support their work while ensuring that the executive branch remains accountable to the South African citizens through Parliament. Consequently, the Caucus cautions the National Executive, which comprises seven political parties represented in the GNU, to act as one Executive led by President Cyril Ramaphosa as Head of the Executive as defined in s83 of the Constitution and not as individual political parties in the Executive. We have already noted some GNU partners seeking to distinguish themselves along party lines in the Executive, a worrying tendency which, if left unchecked, would go against the spirit of the Constitution, which calls for collective accountability of a single Executive.
Following an intensive four-day induction and orientation programme attended by our members from 02 to 05 July 2024, the ANC Caucus is committed to fervently advancing towards completing all necessary measures for the 7th Parliament to serve as the tribune of the people.
Significant progress has already been made with parliamentary committees being formed. The committees are configured to execute their constitutionally mandated responsibility to hold the respective departments and organs of state in the seventh administration accountable. In furtherance of our mandate to ensure scrutiny and exercise oversight over the work of government, the ANC, led by the Chief Whip will, as a matter of urgency, engage parties participating in the Government of National Unity (GNU) to appoint the Chairpersons and Whips of the parliamentary oversight committees as approved by the Rules Committee.
The people of South Africa anticipate a Parliament that embodies their interests and caters for their needs. We are resolute in transforming this expectation into a tangible reality, ensuring that the 7th Parliament is an instrument of people's power and belongs to the masses.
Ends
Issued by the ANC Parliamentary Caucus
For further details, contact the Chief Whip of the ANC
Hon. Mdumiseni Ntuli (MP)
Contact no.: 079 889 8406
International-Solidarity
ITUC General Secretary solidarity visit to Israel
4 July 2024
During a visit to Israel and affiliate Histadrut this week, ITUC General Secretary Luc Triangle pressed for a ceasefire, the increase of humanitarian aid for the people of Gaza, the return of all hostages and support of the rights of all workers in Israel and Palestine.
This visit followed a mission to the West Bank in May, where the ITUC expressed its solidarity with Palestinian workers. Working people from both sides are the victims of the ongoing conflict and the current war.
Luc Triangle’s work in Israel was focused around three pillars: meetings with political leaders, meeting trade unions at company and national levels and a visit to the region where the atrocities took place on 7 October.
In the meetings with Israeli President Yitzhak Herzog and Labour Party (HaAvoda) leader Yair Golan, Luc Triangle pressed the need for an urgent ceasefire in combination with the immediate release of all hostages, and the continuation and increase of humanitarian aid to the population of Gaza. He also pushed the need for a concrete implementation of the two-state solution with security guarantees and responsibilities for both states. Importantly, both political leaders recognised the need for urgent action from the Israeli government to address the situation of more than 200,000 Palestinian workers who lost their jobs and income after 7 October.
Luc Triangle also shared his experiences of the mission to the West Bank and his view that if no action is taken against the daily humiliation and intimidation of Palestinians there, extreme violence might also become a reality in West Bank cities.
Luc Triangle said: “The ongoing spiral of violence must stop, as it only serves to empower extremists on both sides. Dialogue, based on equal rights, dignity and respect for both Israelis and Palestinians must replace aggression to ensure justice and security in line with international law. The ITUC supports the call of Histadrut for the return of all hostages, urgent elections in Israel, an end to the war and violence.. The current Netanyahu government only feeds extremism on both sides, and it has polarised Israeli society and created deep divisions.
“During a visit to the hostage rehabilitation unit in Tel Aviv, I heard from a 65 year-old woman about what she went through during 52 days of being held hostage. I also met a grandson whose life now turns around getting his grandfather freed after his grandmother was already released. I went to the border between Israel, Egypt and Gaza and witnessed the supply of trucks carrying food and material to the Gaza strip. I went to the kibbutz Kfar Aza and the Nova music festival grounds where hundreds of people lost their lives during the atrocities.
“But I also saw signs of hope among young people and in workplaces where Jewish, Arab, Christian and Palestinian workers come together and organise their trade union activities. All of them expressed the deep wish for peace, security and the end of all violence. They all wished for a future where freedoms, rights and democracy prevail. The ITUC supports all political actors and Histadrut that want to work in that direction.
“Working people on both sides are paying a huge price in this conflict, which has already passed its critical point. It is imperative also that the international community steps up to facilitate dialogue and develop a roadmap to finally bring peace and balance. Building trust again cannot be left alone to the Israelis and the Palestinians; the world needs to step up and act.
“The ITUC is convinced that trade unions can and should be gamechangers in the current difficult context. Trade unions should lead the way. We will continue to work with our two affiliates in Israel and Palestine, Histadrut and the PGFTU, towards a sustainable solution of peace founded on the principles of human rights, security, respect, freedoms and democracy, ensuring a viable two-state solution.”
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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