Johannesburg – The 55th Congress of the ANC has arrived with a dark cloud hovering over the tripartite alliance because of a fallout with the Constitutional Court and struggles between workers and the state.
A few days ago, the Constitutional Court set free one of South Africa’s greatest political felons, Janusz Walus, after he served decades in prison for the murder of Chris Hani. The move incensed the SACP and Hani’s wife, Limpho.
They accused the Constitutional Court of being unfair and inconsiderate. Hani’s wife had also blamed Chief Justice Raymond Zondo, an ally of President Cyril Ramaphosa, for what they described as a counter-revolutionary judgment.
The SACP had threatened to leave the alliance numerous times, but it appeared that the desire to leave had grown stronger with government austerity measures and a perceived assault on workers’ rights.
Earlier this year, Gwede Mantashe, an elder of the ANC, was booed at a Cosatu elective congress. Workers had even encouraged the SACP to contest elections on its own. The relationship was further worsened by tensions between public servants and the government. The government had even reneged on a 2018 wage agreement.
Mantashe was not the only one who was booed; Ramaphosa was also booed by workers at a May Day rally.
Political analyst Lesiba Teffo said the relationship between all members of the tripartite alliance had run its course.
“This is a repeat of an old script. In 2007, the SACP went to register as a political party. That is how bad things were. I would say that this is a relationship that has run its course. They know they need the ANC for cushy positions, which is why they will not leave,” Teffo said.
Teffo said the alliance’s views on the Constitution were an indication that the ANC, the SACP, and Cosatu were no longer bonded by the same values that had brought them together.
“The president has also said things about the Constitutional Court; the tripartite alliance has said things about the Constitutional Court. They are the inheritors of the founders of the Constitution (which goes to show) that (if) your father was a millionaire, it doesn’t make you a millionaire. The founding fathers had hoped to better the lives of the people,” Teffo said.
The Star