\u25aa As this Lekgotla of the ANC National Executive Committee draws to a close, we are reminded of the difficult and painful times through which we are living.
\u25aa Earlier today, we bid farewell to one of our most beloved NEC members, Cde Jackson Mthembu. Yesterday, we heard with deep sadness of the passing of Jonas Gwanga, a revolutionary cultural icon. As we mourn their passing, we remember all those within our movement and society who have lost their lives.
\u25aa We pay tribute to the health workers and other frontline workers who have worked tirelessly to care for, and protect, all the people of this country.
\u25aa We have now come to the end of one of the most critical makgotla that the ANC has held in recent times.
\u25aa Many people are looking to this lekgotla to provide direction on the actions we must now take to overcome COVID-19 and to rebuild our economy and our society.
\u25aa This imperative is evident in the way that comrades have approached the discussions in this lekgotla, focusing in particular on what needs to be done, by whom, by when and with what resources. There is a clear appreciation of the urgency of implementation, given the dire state of our economy and high levels of poverty, inequality and unemployment among our people.
\u25aa For the most part, the reports from the commissions go beyond the restatement of existing policy positions and past decisions. They provide practical measures that can be taken to ANC structures, government departments, public entities and other areas of deployment for implementation.
\u25aa This lekgotla has placed the defeat of COVID-19 as our overriding and most pressing responsibility for 2021, which requires both an intensive vaccination programme alongside the intensification of prevention measures, increased screening and testing and the further strengthening of our health system.
\u25aa While government must work with all social partners in undertaking this work, the lekgotla has identified a critical role for the ANC and Alliance in a massive campaign of social mobilisation involving all sectors of society on a non partisan basis, to reach every corner of the country.
\u25aa We need to build broad acceptance among our people of the vaccine programme and to vigorously tackle misinformation and misunderstanding. To do this, we must ourselves be disciplined in our own public pronouncements, ensuring that we speak accurately and clearly.
\u25aa We have agreed that while we work with urgency to undertake these immediate tasks, our planning and preparedness for future crises must be improved. This must include investment in our own vaccine development and production capacity.
\u25aa This lekgotla has affirmed that we must place the creation of jobs at the centre of our economic reconstruction and recovery plan. This is the most direct and effective way to respond to the hardship that many families are today facing.
\u25aa We have therefore re-affirmed the priority interventions contained in the plan that emerged from our engagements with social partners last year \u2013 infrastructure investment, employment stimulus, localisation and industrialisation, and the expansion of energy generation.
\u25aa The Lekgotla stressed the importance of moving swiftly to implementation of commitments. It accordingly recommended strengthening monitoring and evaluation and ensuring more effective consequence management in cases where implementation does not occur.
\u25aa The lekgotla highlighted the need to build a durable social compact between business, government and labour so we harness all our energies and resources to ensure the urgent implementation of the plan in the interests of all South Africans.
\u25aa We have also said that the current economic reforms must not only address immediate challenges, but must also lay the basis for the achievement of our broader transformation objectives. They must be implemented in a manner that supports and advances radical socio-economic transformation.
\u25aa Given the significant fiscal constraints the country faces, which will be placed under greater pressure as we roll out the vaccine programme, there is a need to re-prioritise existing commitments in the budget to ensure we support those in need and stimulate inclusive growth.
\u25aa As Parliament works with urgency to finalise the amendments to section 25 of the Constitution to enable the expropriation of land without compensation, we have agreed on the need to tie land redistribution to agrarian reform.
\u25aa Land redistribution must be expedited. Land in the hands of government must be released. Land redistribution must bolster the agricultural sector, lead to economic growth, and meaningfully tackle poverty, inequality and unemployment.
\u25aa We must make certain that land reform improves food security for poor families and maintains food security for the nation. Agrarian transformation must be promoted including for black farmers \u2013 large and small – who should be granted security of tenure and given farming support such as access to know-how, equipment and markets.
\u25aa The effectiveness of our recovery will depend to a great extent on the scale and pace at which we can bring new electricity generation capacity online. The lekgotla therefore agree that we should pursue several measures simultaneously, including the procurement of new generation sources in line with the IRP 2019, including renewables, the procurement of emergency power, improving the efficiency of Eskom, and enabling more embedded generation by firms.
\u25aa The lekgotla has agreed that, in the context of the continuing COVID pandemic, we need to consider the extension of basic income relief to unemployed people who do not receive any other form of state assistance. This would depend on the state of public finances and that there should be a clear exit strategy.
\u25aa The meeting agreed that the national Loan Guarantee Scheme must be fundamentally restructured to improve its accessibility and it should enable the participation of non-bank SMME funders.
\u25aa It also agreed that the Public Procurement Bill must be finalised as a matter of urgency and tabled in Parliament for consideration during 2021. The Bill must cater for set asides for small businesses and co-operatives to support localisation.
\u25aa The economic recovery needs to advance gender equality in the economy. We must give effect to the principle of equal pay for equal work and implement the decision to support women entrepreneurs and industrialists through public procurement.
\u25aa The Lekgotla welcomed the work being carried out in a number of government agencies to deal with corruption. It agreed that measures to capacitate the NPA and other law enforcement agencies, improve transparency around procurement and improve collaboration between agencies must be strengthened.
\u25aa The Lekgotla reaffirmed the ANC\u2019s support for the Zondo Commission into state capture and once again called on law enforcement agencies to act without fear, favour or prejudice in rooting out corruption.
\u25aa An important decision of this Lekgotla is to convene an Economic Summit that critically looks at what COVID has merely accentuated: poverty, inequality and unemployment in South Africa. This Summit needs to focus renewed attention on broad-based black economic empowerment, the transformation of ownership, management and control patterns in the economy, and the promotion of black and women entrepreneurs and industrialists.
\u25aa The Lekgotla agreed that as a responsible global citizen, South Africa must contribute its fair share to ambitious climate action by means of a proposed update of South Africa\u2019s first nationally determined contribution.
\u25aa The ANC and its alliance partners will therefore host an urgent workshop on these matters to guide the policy process.
The Lekgotla debated how best the country should use radio frequency spectrum for development purposes and what should be the correct configuration of public and private sector participation in this sector.
The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa(ICASA) has released two Invitations to apply, one for the auction and one for the Wireless Open Access Network.
The Lekgotla urges the government to engage ICASA and the sector in general to ensure that the licensing process proceeds expeditiously through an open and transparent process.
The applicants for spectrum must be empowered, ie they must satisfy the BBBEE requirements including that of direct ownership.
The process must lead to economic growth, lowering the costs to communicate, and the promotion of effective competition in the mobile market.
\u25aa We have agreed that the capability of the state is vital to an economic and social recovery, and that specific emphasis needs to be placed on strengthening local government.
\u25aa The lekgotla emphasised the centrality of addressing all challenges in local government towards economic development and improving the lives of South Africans.
\u25aa The district development model must be strengthened by ensuring the financial viability of district municipalities and their ability to raise revenue, and deliver services sustainably.
\u25aa Basic service provision will be accelerated through job-creating projects in:
– Water: Reticulation, borehole construction, spring protection
– Construction of rural roads
– Maintenance of public assets
– Rural bridge construction
\u25aa Public employment programmes such as the Community Work Programme will be redesigned to develop skills and promote local economic development.
\u25aa The lekgotla was unambiguous in its resolve to strengthen consequence management and accountability in municipalities through strengthening public accounts committees, acting against public servants conducting business with municipalities, increasing transparency of supply chain management systems, and strict enforcement of the listing of municipal officials and service providers implicated in maladministration.
\u25aa It also urged the state to implement drastic measures to deal with individuals who are vandalising and destroying public infrastructure such as schools, water electricity and transport networks.
\u25aa An important decision is that the ANC and Alliance need to be working far more closely at local level, together with other structures of the democratic movement, to ensure that municipalities are well governed and managed, that they are accountable and transparent, and that they remain focused on the developmental needs of communities.
\u25aa The meeting identified a broad problem that many local development projects have been started, but not completed. We have therefore resolved on a comprehensive audit of unfinished infrastructure projects, which will inform interventions to complete projects and perform necessary maintenance.
\u25aa As we approach local government elections, we need as the Alliance to select candidates for local government that are capable, experienced and are respected in their communities. We have agreed that all existing councillors must go through an intensive evaluation, particularly in municipalities that have performed poorly or where there allegations of corruption.
\u25aa We need to speed up implementation of our decision to establish an ANC Electoral Committee to lead the candidate selection process.
\u25aa The lekgotla identified the need to provide more resources at a local level to combat gender-based violence and femicide. While national government has reprioritised resources to tackle the epidemic of crimes against women and children, much of the work needs to happen in municipalities and communities. These efforts need to be properly resourced.
\u25aa The ANC will continue to mobilise across society for a comprehensive campaign to end gender-based violence and femicide so that no woman or child need live in fear.
\u25aa The lekgotla also reflected on another of the ANC\u2019s priority tasks for 2021, namely working towards a better Africa and a better world.
\u25aa As South Africa\u2019s term as the Chair of the African Union draws to a close, the lekgotla agreed that we need to continue to be engaged with several of the priorities of our term.
\u25aa These include the continental response to the COVID pandemic and ensuring the access of all African countries to sufficient dose of vaccines.
\u25aa We will continue to be actively involved in the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area, giving particularly attention to our initiatives on the economic empowerment of African women.
\u25aa As a country and as an organisation, we will continue to participate in efforts to silence the guns on the continent. We will do this through our participation in multilateral bodies and processes and, where appropriate and where sought, through bilateral engagements.
\u25aa The lekgotla raised concerns about the lack of progress in resolving the issue of Western Sahara in a manner that recognises the right of the Saharawi people to full independence and self-determination. We will intensify our efforts in the African Union, the United Nations and other forums to advance this struggle.
\u25aa The lekgotla welcomed the positive commitment to renewed global collaboration signaled by President Biden of the USA. We call on America to speedily reverse the illegal recognition and imposition of Morocco sovereignty over Saharawi.
\u25aa We trust that this commitment to global peace justice and security will include a focus on the rights of the people of Palestine and the occupied territories.
\u25aa The meeting welcomed the decision of the Pan African Women\u2019s Organisation to locate its permanent headquarters in South Africa. Among other things, this development presents a valuable opportunity to broaden the participation of South African women\u2019s formations in this important continental organisation.
\u25aa The lekgotla recognised that a coherent, integrated and efficient approach to immigration and border management is important for economic development and social stability. It agreed that the country\u2019s immigration laws need to be implemented more rigorously and consistently, in line with our Constitution and international commitments and in pursuit of our national interests.
\u25aa Over the course of the next few days, the decisions of this NEC lekgotla will be consolidated into a report that will be distributed to all our structures, to our Alliance partners and to the broader South African public.
\u25aa These decisions give effect to the priorities and tasks identified in the ANC\u2019s January 8th Statement, and provide a clear line of march for the year ahead.
\u25aa These decisions give expression to our theme for 2021: Unity, Renewal and Reconstruction in the Year of Charlotte Maxeke.
\u25aa I would like to thank all the members of the NEC, representatives of the ANC\u2019s leagues, Alliance partners and other mass democratic movement formations, and all the deployees from various different sectors for an enriching and productive lekgotla.
\u25aa I wish to thank former ANC Presidents Thabo Mbeki and Jacob Zuma and former Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe for their participation in this Lekgotla, and for their ongoing contributions to the work of our movement.
\u25aa I would also like to thank the members of the planning and technical team at ANC headquarters, who have made this virtual meeting possible.
\u25aa It is clear what needs to be done. It is clear what each of us is expected to do.
\u25aa Let us go out now and do the work.
I thank you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
END<\/p>\n\n\n\n
ISSUED BY THE AFRICAN NATIONAL CONGRESS
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