‘ANC still committed to socio-economic reform’
Treasurer-general denies claim that, under CR, party is refusing to implement policies
ANC TREASURER-general Paul Mashatile has defended the party’s leadership under its president Cyril Ramaphosa from accusations that it is refusing to implement policies of radical socio-economic transformation in government.
This comes as the party prepares for its annual January 8 birthday rally in Kimberley in the Northern Cape tomorrow when Ramaphosa is expected to outline the blueprint for the party’s programmes for the year ahead.
Mashatile was speaking in Hulana Park in Galeshewe where he solicited support for the birthday rally at the 25 000-capacity Tafel Lager Park Stadium also known as Griqua Park.
Recently, senior leaders of the governing party had publicly disagreed on whether some of the resolutions adopted at the party’s 2017 conference, including the nationalisation of the SA Reserve Bank, were worth implementing.
Mashatile said the ANC leadership respected the resolutions and would not just implement them without following due processes and contestation.
“When you implement policy as leadership, you go through phases. You go through engagements and challenges but there is no retreat. Where there are challenges, we will go back to the NGC (national general council) and say to our members on this one there is this or that stumbling block and maybe instead of doing it this way, we (should) go that way.
“So we will use the NGC to review the challenges.”
Since the beginning of the week, the ANC top brass has been criss-crossing the province drumming up support for its birthday rally, including engaging communities who complained about massive joblessness and the drought ravaging the country.
ANC national executive member Sfiso Buthelezi, meanwhile, urged the private sector not to consider the economic growth crisis as a problem that should only be solved by the state.
He said the ANC leadership in government met the agricultural community in the Northern Cape during this week’s campaign. “The Minister of Agriculture, comrade Thoko (Didiza) had her whole team here yesterday because this is an agricultural province, by and large, to say how do we harness the agricultural activity so that we can create more jobs. Most of the economic problems that we are having are a function of low economic growth,” Buthelezi said.
In the meantime, Mashatile maintained that it was all systems go for the rally. “We are hoping that we can start early because it might be too hot in Kimberley.” He said the party had lined up two key activities for today (Friday) before the main rally, the presidential golf day and the gala dinner, where business leaders will rub shoulders with the ANC’s top brass.
“Many business people will be going there to play golf and then in the evening we will have dinner and the president will speak on issues he will be dealing with in the January statement.”
“When you implement policy as leadership, you go through phases… Paul Mashatile ANC TREASURER