Address by ANC President Jacob Zuma at the South African Communist Party Policy Conference, 27 September 2008, Randburg Towers

We meet at a very historic policy conference for the SACP, as it takes place at the end of one of the most momentous weeks in the history of our country.

The events of the past week have changed the course of history of our country`s young constitutional democracy.

The African National Congress took a difficult and painful decision to recall the President of the Republic, Comrade Thabo Mbeki from government. In many democracies around the world it is a normal occurrence in the hustle and bustle of politics, based on the understanding that cadres serve at the pleasure of their parties. Comrade Mbeki understood it in this context as well. The organisation followed all the democratic and constitutional processes to effect that democratic decision of the NEC. It was not a pleasant decision, it can never be.

But the organisation had to take such action to allow the country to move forward and focus on service delivery and the improvement of the lives of citizens.

We tested the maturity of our democracy and democratic institutions, and proved to the country and the world that we have nothing to fear. Our democratic institutions are strong and solid, our systems are in tact, and we can weather any political storm.

As you are aware Comrade Mbeki resigned his position in line with the wishes of the organisation. In the process, a few members of Cabinet decided to follow suit while the majority remained as per the wishes and instructions of the ANC.

It is now history that we have Comrade Kgalema Motlanthe as the President of the Republic and a new Cabinet that will take forward the vision and mission of the ANC.

We would like to congratulate Comrade Motlanthe on his election as the State President. We will support him wholeheartedly as the ANC, to make our government successful in meeting its mandate. Comrades, together with all South Africans, we have proven that South Africa is a stable democratic country that is ruled and governed on the basis of solid democratic principles. We thank all South Africans for their patience and understanding during a difficult period as we ventured into the unknown.

We thank opposition political parties in Parliament who also put the country first and participated in the process of change of leadership in the country`s

National Executive.

We thank former President Thabo Mbeki for statesmanlike manner in which he responded to this debacle. He made the transition smooth and dignified, clearly putting the country first, above personal interests. We thank Alliance partners during this trying and difficult process. Without the active and constructive participation of our allies we may not have achieved this victory for democracy.

This means therefore comrades that as we move forward we must be united in consolidating the democratic victories that we have won. It means that we must be vigilant at all times about possible pitfalls that may lie ahead of us, and understand that in order to succeed we will need to unite and speak with one voice.

The current developments mean that we must not be diverted from the immediate tasks and urgent challenges that face us.

We can now all focus on supporting our government in the important tasks of fighting poverty, crime, delivering essential basic services to the people as well as our efforts to create a developmental state.

We have an urgent and important obligation to contest the democratic elections next year. This is a significant task, when we approach these elections we must approach them as a united and solid force. We must approach these elections with a determination to deliver an overwhelming democratic victory for the ANC.

As we approach these elections we need to be of one mind and purpose, we need to be clear about our strategic objectives in relation to our election strategy.

Comrades, we carry a weighty responsibility, to honour through our actions, the proud traditions of struggle that have characterised our Alliance over decades.

But, most importantly, we carry a responsibility to the people of this country, and to the generations that will follow, to lead a national democratic revolution that will banish from our society all forms of discrimination, oppression and deprivation.

During our Alliance Summit earlier this year we said: "we must agree on an Alliance programme of action that will engage all our formations in mass work across the length and breadth of South Africa. Amongst these is the fight against poverty, which has become even more critical given the current global challenges such as the rise in fuel and food prices".

The conference in Polokwane provided a clear direction which we must undertake to create a better life. We agreed on policies that our government in 2009 should implement to accelerate social and economic transformation.

We have made it clear that the creation of decent work opportunities will be the primary focus of our economic policies. In seeking much-needed foreign and domestic investments, we will not compromise the rights of workers and the poor and the national democratic revolution. We will continue to work with business and labour to build a vibrant, resilient and sustainable economy. We want to focus on job creation because whilst many families have access to social grants and other poverty alleviation programmes, many of these households and communities remain trapped in poverty. They are dependent on the state and thus unable to access the opportunities created by the positive economic climate.

We have done exceptionally well in providing means for such families to survive, through a massive social security programme, extending social grants to more then 12 million South Africans to date, especially children.

We have stated that we are building a developmental state and not a welfare state. Therefore our anti-poverty programmes must seek to empower people to take themselves out of poverty, while creating adequate social nets to protect the most vulnerable in our society such as older persons, people with disabilities and vulnerable children.

We have also stated clearly that we want to accelerate the land reform programme. We want land reform to be linked to rural development programmes.

People should not just be given land and left on their own. They must be assisted by government through various programmes to ensure that the land is utilised optimally to fight poverty.

On crime, we have said that our laws must bite. We are not going to allow crime to divert our attention from fighting poverty and building a better life for our people. Based on successes during the struggle against apartheid, we have decided to revive street committees to support our police in fighting crime. The war against crime is everybody`s business; it cannot be left to government or the police alone.

Comrades, we have seen the value of investing in education and see the gains in all developing countries in Africa and beyond who undertook this path.

The literacy rate is high in developing countries where a concerted effort was made to prioritise education. We intend to promote access to education from the pre-school to tertiary level. Education and skills development are powerful tools that will assist us to fight poverty.

We have reiterated the call for state owned enterprises to revisit their role of training our young people. Many artisans in our country were trained in what was then called parastatals, and this made an enormous contribution to the country`s skills base.

We are not saying other business entities should not invest in skills development, but we encourage a return to what worked successfully in the past.

Health care is no doubt one of the most important areas of intervention. A healthy population is the cornerstone of development. We want to ensure that access to health becomes an achievable goal in rural and urban areas as well as established and informal settlements.

From primary to secondary health care, to the revitalisation of our hospitals and clinics, the health for all campaign will be our rallying cry in 2009.

We also want more action with regards to the reduction of HIV infections, in effective treatment for tuberculosis and other infectious diseases, as well as widespread HIV prevention, treatment and support programmes.

I have just mentioned a few policy areas comrades. Our Polokwane resolutions are extensive and far-reaching and should enable us to move a great step forward towards achieving our goals.

We at Luthuli House will now work flat out to renew and build the organisation and prepare for an overwhelming victory in the 2009 so that we can improve on our already exceptional record of service delivery. We are going to focus all our energies on getting the ANC ready for elections.

Together as the Alliance, we will prove that there is no alternative to the ANC. Nobody has a better programme than the ANC, for the social and economic transformation of this country.

I wish you well in your conference.

I thank you.

Viva SACP!! Viva!!

Viva ANC!! Viva!!

Viva COSATU!!

All Power To The People!!