By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The South African Communist Party (SACP) has resolved to contest the 2024 national elections within what it calls an effective and reconfigured alliance.
The SACP has been mulling contesting the 2024 elections without the African National Congress (ANC), decrying the exclusion from key decisions, along with Cosatu (Congress of South African Trade Unions), by the ruling party.
On Monday, SACP general secretary Solly Mapaila addressed a media briefing where he read the party’s statement following the augmented central committee meeting that took place at the weekend.
He said after two weeks of robust discussions with the party’s provincial and district structures – the committee agreed to contest elections with an effective reconfigured alliance toward the 2024 elections.
“The reconfiguration of the alliance, at the moment, is not something we’ll go back from. Future collaboration and cooperation, particularly on the platform of contesting elections, will be based on the configuration of the alliance. We’ve said if this is not possible, we will go to the second modality of the left popular front. In other words, we’ll contest without the ANC.”
Mapaila outlined the proposals that he said will form the basis of an effective reconfiguration of the alliance.
“For instance, the living conditions of our people are deteriorating, and yet the economic trajectory that we are pursuing is not meant to resolve these problems. It’s a neo-liberal capitalist trajectory, which can’t respond to the conditions faced by our people.”
International Criminal Court (ICC)
The South African Communist Party (SACP) has called on government to speedily withdraw from the International Criminal Court (ICC).
In its 2017 national conference, the ANC resolved to withdraw from the ICC, but rescinded the decision at its 2022 national conference.
This came out at the end of the communist party’s Annual Augmented Central Committee meeting held at the weekend to assess developments in the country.
Mapaila says the party is of the view that the ICC and the US have double standards.
“We are accusing the ICC of double standards and selective justice – that’s our position. Even in your own research, where are the weapons of mass destruction that they were looking for in the middle east, Iraq, after they had destroyed that particular country, after thousands of people were killed?Why were they not held to account? But worse is when the US is not a member of the ICC but wants to subject other countries to the ICC. That’s really double standards.”
The has been concerns about South Africa’s stance on whether it intends to act on the warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) against Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Repo Rate Hike
Mapaila said it’s concerned about the South African Reserve Bank Monetary Policy Committee’s decision to increase the repo rate
Last week the SARB announced a repo rate hike of 50 basis points in response to rising inflation levels.
Mapaila described the increases as punitive, affecting mostly the working class and the poor.
“Raising interest rates is a blow to the already constrained working class, middle class, and different sections of businesses – especially SMMEs. This no doubt will depress the already low consumer spending, and thus impact aggregate demand.”
He says the central bank will reduce inflation by “engineering a depression” which will devastate the South African economy.