The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) welcomes President Cyril Ramaphosa’s announcement of the appointment of the National Dialogue Steering Committee consisting of representatives of government, political parties elected to Parliament, Organised Labour, Business and Civil Society.
COSATU will participate in the Dialogue as the many deep-seated socio-economic challenges facing the working class, the economy and the state require the mobilisation of the entirety of society, including capital to resolve.
We will continue to sharply raise the many crises affecting workers from a dangerously high unemployment rate of 42.4% and entrenched levels of poverty, crime and corruption, to stagnant economic growth, and struggling public and municipal services.
Attention must be paid to the still painful legacies of apartheid and colonial induced inequalities, as well as the explosion of hate speech and racial incitement on social media and its effect on our social fabric and collective efforts to build a non-racial and non-sexist society as envisaged by the Freedom Charter, a nation that belongs to all who live in it, Black and White.
These threats to the many historic gains we have achieved since 1994, require bold and decisive interventions. Business as usual approaches, naive notions of neo-liberalism and reckless austerity budget cuts, will not fix any of them, in fact they will exacerbate our many challenges.
It is critical that the Steering Committee be mindful at all times that the state has limited resources and workers do not take kindly to reports of large amounts of funding being sought for it whilst hospitals experience dire shortages of nurses, police stations lack working vehicles and Home Affairs experiences long queues due to aging infrastructure.
Whilst the Presidency is correct to push forward with the National Dialogue, government will do well to hear the skepticism of many, including workers, who correctly ask what the Dialogue will achieve and how will we ensure that it does not follow the same route of similar reviews and discussions previously held? Most importantly society, especially the unemployed, the working and middle classes, expect to see concrete actions emanating and to see public and municipal services being fixed, the economy growing, unemployment falling and their daily lives improving.
The Federation will play its part in not only ventilating the lived realities of the working class, and crafting progressive and sober solutions, but also in holding government, business and other stakeholders accountable for their part in implementing the proposed action plans.
Ultimately the Dialogue must help put South Africa firmly on the path to renewal, moral regeneration, inclusive economic growth and decent work, a capacitated developmental state, and a better life for all.
Issued by COSATU
Matthew Parks (COSATU Parliamentary Coordinator)
Mobile: 082 785 0687
Email: matthew@cosatu.org.za
