By Quinton Mtyala
Friday’s Cosatu Western Cape May Day rally was an opportunity for the union confederation, along with its Tripartite Alliance partners to sing from the same hymn sheet and act as a rally of sorts ahead of this year’s local government elections.
The May Day celebrations, hosted in Mbekweni, Paarl saw the local stadium packed with residents and those bussed to the event from across the province to celebrate the gains of the labour movement.
Sizakele Khanyile, 23, an interior design student had trekked from Cape Town to Paarl by taxi to sell her ANC, and union-branded floppy hats. Her older sister had started the business which had since supported her siblings through school and university.
Pointing to the caps, spread out on a tarpaulin along the pavement, Khanyile said her sister hired people who sewed the caps, and travels across the country to sell her wares.
“My sister could not be here because she’s in Joburg, I’m not shy to come and do this business in front of people,” said Khanyile.
ANC chair, and Mineral and Petroleum Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe was initially billed as the main speaker at the event but was a last minute withdrawal and instead was replaced on the stage by Water and Sanitation deputy minister David Mahlobo.
Mahlobo, the former Intelligence minister, was stinging in his criticism of those who had lobbied US President Donald Trump to act against the South African government over false claims of “white genocide”.
“They go and say to the world we are killing our own people when the statistics and numbers are very clear: We don’t have genocide in our own country,” Mahlobo said.
He also called on workers to oppose those who sought to undermine the gains made by the labour movement, specifically pointing out to “those who want to undermine the bargaining capability” for which there were structures like Nedlac and the CCMA.
“There are those who continue to exploit workers on the basis that there are many people who are not employed, especially in the hospitality industry…the agricultural industries and many other industries,” said Mahlobo.
Speaking to EWN on the sidelines, the SACP’s Western Cape secretary Benson Ngqentsu said that the party was still consolidating its elections machinery in the province.
“We are ready for elections. Our elections machinery is oiled as the SACP,” said Ngqentsu.
Among those in the crowd at the Mbekweni Stadium were ANC politicians, some who had been part of the party’s provincial executive which was disbanded in late October last year and replaced by a task team.
The convenor of that task team, Jerimia Thuynsma said that the announcement on Thursday of the date for the local government elections meant that the ANC in the province had to jack up its preparations for the polls.
“Our teams are now in place. Now it’s about going door-to-door, listen to the issues, listen to their stories and complaints, listen to everything and see how we can deal with the issues. In the Western Cape its easy because we are the opposition because we know what the issues are,” said Thuynsma.
Eyewitness News
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