ANC, SACP put differences aside during Joe Slovo commemoration

THE ANC and the SACP presented a united front when commemorating the 31st anniversary of the passing of the communist party’s national chairperson and Struggle stalwart, Joe Slovo, on Tuesday. 

The alliance partners have been embroiled in a tense standoff after the SACP announced its plans to contest elections independent of the ANC. Matters came to head when ANC president Cyril Ramaphosa announced that the party’s National General Council (NGC) in December had resolved that SACP members should recuse themselves from the joint election structure. 

In his address on Tuesday, Ramaphosa briefly reflected on his party’s relationship with SACP saying: "We must ensure that the alliance becomes an ever more effective instrument of fundamental social and economic change. Despite the disagreements of the present, our common objective remains the same: the achievement of a National Democratic Society. It is our responsibility as leaders and members of all alliance formations to work together in pursuit of that common objective. As we do so, we must draw on the strategic insight, integrity, political honesty, commitment, and deep humanity of Cde Joe Slovo."

Ramaphosa also reflected on the privilege brought on by the presence of the ANC to the commemorative gathering, which comes just days before he is set to deliver his January 8 Statement address in Rustenburg on Saturday.

"We are honoured to deliver this message on behalf of the ANC, as we gather to commemorate the revolutionary life of Isithwalandwe, Joe Slovo... This year, our country will mark the 30th anniversary of the adoption of our democratic Constitution, and the 65th anniversary of the establishment of the People's Army, uMkhonto weSizwe," he added.

Speaking ahead of a keynote address by SACP Secretary General, Solly Mapaila, Ramaphosa gave his own account of what Slovo stood for.

"Comrade Joe Slovo understood that equality necessarily meant that all people everywhere deserved equal rights and equal treatment. He was an internationalist who fought not only for the liberation of the people of South Africa, but for the people of our continent and for people across the world. It is this principle that continues to guide our international outlook," he stated.

Cape Times