THE CONTINUATION OF CiC SPEECH!!! 16. That we have been able to forecast and 100% know what was going to happen is reason enough to appreciate that our tools of analysis are guiding us towards a correct direction. 17. These observations, Fighters, have made us as revolutionaries to ask the groundbreaking question of WHAT IS TO BE DONE? Under this question, we have asked basically three questions: a. Whether Economic Freedom Fighters should remain inside of the ruling party advocating for radical change with the hope that one day the ruling party will in the immediate future self-correct, accept this as the only practical way to save society from starvation and declining living conditions of our people? b. Whether we should constitute an independent political movement not aligned to an electoral political party to advocate for economic freedom in our lifetime, but not contest elections? c. Whether we should start an independent political party which will contest the general elections with a manifesto that decidedly speaks to demands for economic freedom in our lifetime? 18. These three questions were responded to by thousands of Activists from across the country and through various channels. All these ended up in the NATIONAL ASSEMBLY ON WHAT IS TO BE DONE, which happened in Soweto on the 26th and 27th of July 2013. 19. In what we should now call the SOWETO DECLARATION, the National Assembly on What is to be Done said, “After careful thought and thorough process of consultation with the masses of our people, we came and resolved that South Africa’s people wishes and aspiration must be respected by launching an organisation which shall fight, strive and advance these aspirations unapologetically! EFF, as a people’s movement, shall in its content, character and outlook, be a true a ‘weapon of struggle in the hands of the people and a collective effort to solve people’s own problems’. The National Assembly recognises that South Africa is at a cross-road for all wrong reasons. The hard won victories over colonial, racist and apartheid system have been meaningless although necessary due to lack of economic emancipation of the majority, and African majority. As a consequence thereof, the South Africans, through their delegates spoke overwhelmingly, that, they, the people, need a new alternative, a radical, militant, fearless movement to serve their interest. Our immediate programme include registration of Economic Freedom Fighters as a political party that will contest the 2014 elections, mobilisation and recruitment of members, establishment of all Regional, Branch and Cell structures and formations of the Movement. Our immediate political programme include building a strong movement of Community based, workers, youth, students, women, and sectoral formations and organisations that will proclaim economic freedom as their political programme” WHAT DO WE STAND FOR? THE 7 CARDINAL PILLARS AS OUR PRIMARY POLITICAL PROGRAMME: 20. Fellow fighters, our primary political programme is the EFF Founding Manifesto, which was adopted as the official political programme in Soweto in the National Assembly on What is to be done. 21. The analysis, diagnosis and solutions provided for in the Founding Manifesto are correct and will stand the test of time. Generations of Economic Freedom Fighters to come will look upon the EFF Founding Manifesto in a similar way Communists and Socialists look upon the Communist Manifesto. 22. The Founding Manifesto of the EFF is our primary political programme, and the 7 cardinal pillars are the main non-negotiable pillars which will hold this organisation together forever. 23. The EFF Founding Manifesto begins with a caption from Frantz Fanon which says, ““Each generation must, out of relative obscurity, discover its mission, fulfil it, or betray it”- The EFF represents a generation which has discovered its mission and we vow that we will never betray our mission. 24. The EFF 7 Cardinal Pillars constitute the core of our political programme, and we will never retreat from these pillars. Substitution of any of these pillars has potential to undermine the cohesion of the EFF. The question we should be asking is what do these 7 pillars mean in practical terms? Maybe we should start from the beginning: a. Expropriation of South Africa’s land without compensation for equal redistribution in use: What this means is that fact that since 1994, the current government has spent more than R50 billion to buy back stolen land from colonial settlers who are not willing to redistribute the land. We speak today, 15% of our people reside in informal settlements, with no land and no hope because government is negotiating with unwilling land thieves who inherited stolen land and claim it as their own. b. Nationalisation of mines, banks, and other strategic sectors of the economy, without compensation: South Africa is home to more than 50 industrial and precious minerals and metals, and these minerals are not contributing to the economic expansion of South Africa. Mineworkers are treated like slaves, and even get killed by the ANC government when they demand better salaries. We need to nationalize the Mines in order to locally beneficiate and industrialise our mineral resources. The law (MPRDA) says that the State should be informed of all minerals leaving the country and such is not happening. c. Building state and government capacity, which will lead to the abolishment of tenders: What we currently have in South Africa is a corrupt State incapable of performing its own functions. The State cannot build roads, it cannot build power stations, it cannot build railways, it cannot build schools, it cannot build hospitals, and it cannot even buy stationery for offices. All these tasks are given to corrupt private companies who bribe state officials and politicians for them to get tenders. We need a state that can perform and deliver its own services. d. Free quality education, healthcare, houses, and sanitation: Education in South Africa remains a privilege of the few, and an absolute majority of our children cannot gain access particularly to post-secondary teaching and education. The current Minister of Higher Education does not even know how many students should be admitted to institutions of Higher Learning in the year 2015, but goes to parliament to ask for millions of Rands to finance Higher Education. We need free quality health care with capacity to service all South Africans. Proper and spacious houses with sanitation like the one we have build for the Hlongwane family in Nkandla should be provided for free to all needy South Africans. e. Massive protected industrial development to create millions of sustainable jobs, including the introduction of minimum wages in order to close the wage gap between the rich and the poor, close the apartheid wage gap and promote rapid career paths for Africans in the workplace: Majority of consumer goods and services which we consume and buy from the retail stores here in South Africa are not made in South Africa. The plastic products, the electronics such as phones, televisions, sound systems, the fridges and many other products are made in other parts of the world. What this means is that we as South Africa are creating jobs for other people in other parts of the world by consuming imported goods and services that are not made in South Africa. Instead of passing legislation that compels all the retail stores to buy locally produced goods and services, the current government is trying to convince ordinary citizens to Buy South African. How are people going to buy South African when there are very few goods and services produced in South Africa. f. Massive development of the African economy and advocating for a move from reconciliation to justice in the entire continent: The economic development of South Africa is interdependent on the development of the entire African economy, where African states trade amongst each other and make sure that we all have real economic activities. The development of South Africa should be linked to the development of Zimbabwe, Swaziland, Lesotho, Botswana, Malawi, DRC, Nigeria and all the countries in the African continent. g. Open, accountable, corrupt-free government and society without fear of victimization by state agencies: We have seen over the recent past that the current government is committed to protection of corruption by State officials and politicians. Corruption of this government starts with the head of state, who steals public money and uses all institutions including Parliament to protect himself from accountability. 25. It is only the EFF that can change these conditions by being true to itself and doing everything in its power to achieve the 7 cardinal pillars. WHAT IS THE CHARACTER OF THE EFF? 26. Let us remind all those who care to pay attention that the EFF is a socialist movement which is correctly defined in the Founding Manifesto. The EFF Founding Manifesto says, a. The EFF is a radical, leftist, anti-capitalist and anti-imperialist movement with an internationalist outlook anchored by popular grassroots formations and struggles. The EFF will be the vanguard of community and workers’ struggles and will always be on the side of the people. The EFF will, with determination and consistency, associate with the protest movement in South Africa and will also join in struggles that defy unjust laws. b. The EFF takes lessons from the notation that “political power without economic emancipation is meaningless”. The movement is inspired by ideals that promote the practice of organic forms of political leadership, which appreciate that political leadership at whatever level is service, not an opportunity for self- enrichment and self-gratification. c. The EFF draws inspiration from the broad Marxist-Leninist tradition and Fanonian schools of thought in their analyses of the state, imperialism, culture and class contradictions in every society. Through organic engagement and a constant relationship with the masses, Economic Freedom Fighters provide clear and cogent alternatives to the current neo-colonial economic system, which in many countries keep the oppressed under colonial domination and subject to imperialist exploitation. d. The EFF is a South African movement with a progressive internationalist outlook, which seeks to engage with global progressive movements. We believe that the best contribution we can make in the international struggle against global imperialism is to rid our country of imperialist domination. 27. We should dismiss with contempt any lousy characterisation which defines the EFF as something else different from how is well articulated in our founding manifesto, as some directionless politicians tried to do. Anybody without influence of intoxicating substances will know that the EFF represents the people of South Africa in particular the working class. 28. Only lazy thinkers who do not rely on scientific analysis of society will characterise the EFF as something else however we will forgive them for they know not what they are doing. 29. Workers in Marikana, the industrial, farm and domestic workers who are members and supporters of the EFF are the core of the South Africas working class. 30. Just a thorough look in the recent past elections will show that the EFF is stronger in communities where the working class are found, such as the Mines, the Farms and informal settlements that are closer to affluent towns and cities. 31. Our movement is a movement of the working class and we can safely say that we are the Vanguard of the working class, all those who do not own the means of production. 32. The EFF is not trapped in some nostalgic reflections and philosophising of the conditions of the working class. We, together with poor communities are at the forefront of the struggles of the poor and the dejected masses of our people. 33. Our aim is not to win over organisations that have failed to liberate our people economically, but to defeat those organisations on the ground and carry forward with the socialist transformation of society. THE MARXIST-LENINIST-FANONIAN CHARACTER OF THE EFF: 34. The EFF is Marxist-Leninist Fanonian in character because primarily we are in pursuit of a class struggle in a neo-colonial political setting. 35. The Marxist-Leninist Fanonian character of the EFF is fundamental to the socialist revolution, which the EFF is in pursuit of. 36. The Marxist-Leninist perspective constitute the correct path towards attainment of the 7 cardinal pillars, which are socialist in character and form. 37. The EFF does not want to impose what Karl Marx called ‘barracks communism’, with forced collectivism, disrespect of the individual and authoritarian state. The socialist project we are in pursuit of does not mean that all people will be wearing same clothes, walking the same way, and doing exactly the same things on the directives of a powerful bureaucracy that disrespects human rights. 38. The EFF does not ascribe to despotism and will not in the socialist transformation of society cling to one party state and cult of personalities, because history has cogently illustrated that such undermines the freedom and rights of the very same people the revolution seek to liberate. 39. The EFF does not ascribe to personality cults, hence we distance ourselves from genuine movements which seek to name places after us as individual leaders and activists for economic freedom. We say so because socialist projects and programmes across the world were largely associated with single individuals and that is not what we are fighting for. 40. Socialism is not some huge bureaucracy that disregards rights and freedoms of individuals. 41. Socialism does not mean a narrow concentration of State or government ownership, but socialized ownership which in the immediate should have components of State ownership and control. 42. It is not a society, where private non-exploitative property (such as Houses, Cars, and Clothes) will be commonly shared. 43. Socialism is about ending the private ownership of the means of production (mines, huge farms, monopoly industries). 44. Socialism does not do away with personal non-exploitative property. 45. Socialism does away with private property owned by individuals and used to make a profit such as factories and banks. 46. People will be able to have and cultivate personal property items like cars, TVs and clothes. 47. Socialism to us primarily means that we should collectively develop the productive forces and make sure that all people have equal access to economic sustainability and have basic needs. 48. The Commanding Heights of the Economy should not be privately owned and the working class led State should be able to provide: a. Free, Compulsory and Quality Education b. Free Water and Sanitation c. Free Quality Housing and Electricity d. Free Health and Treatment of Diseases e. Development that benefits everyone, not few people f. Democracy, Human Rights, Peace and Stability g. Creation of a State Bank to assist Co-operatives and SMMEs h. Restitution of Land to the People as a Whole and Provision of Agricultural Support to Small-scale farmers. 49. This is one struggle we will win, but major steps should be pursued towards victory of the socialist programmes. 50. We should all deist from undermining our ideological tools of analysis because such will undermine the cohesion and coherence of the EFF. 51. Without proper ideological tools of analysis, we will go nowhere, and will only be concerned with common and current affairs issues. UNITY OF PROGRESSIVE WORKING CLASS FORCES IN SOUTH AFRICA: 52.The EFF does not discount the fact that in the class struggle we need absolute unity of all progressive working class forces. We need to unite all the progressive forces and such unity should be on the basis of a political socialist programme, 53. We are not married to positions of leadership, and can give away leadership positions if such will lead to the success of the socialist resolution. 54. We are particularly interested in the unity of organised working class formations under the programme of socialism and we will not compromise such a programme. 55. We are unapologetically at the forefront of working class struggle and should intensify, but we appreciate that there are other working class formations which should be brought into a common consolidate political programme to jointly pursue the struggle for socialism. 56. This requires individual and collective political and ideological maturity amongst all the forces that seek a genuine programme for progressive socialist change. 57. As a fragmented force, we will always find difficulty in fighting against the enemy, hence we need to unite all the left forces. 58. There is no doubt that the struggles waged by political liberation fighters in South Africa and the African continent is worth celebrating, but the reality proven by thorough observation of political realities and developments in the African continent and elsewhere, is that liberation movements are not capable of resolving the massive economic inequalities they inherit from their colonial past. All countries in the African continent that have realised political emancipation have proven that the movements that have taken them from political and social subjugation are not able to take the struggle forward. 59. More often than not, the inability of liberation movements to economically emancipate humanity was ideologically and politically predicted by great revolutionaries and ideologues like Vladimir Lenin, who in 1920 said, “A certain understanding has emerged between the bourgeoisie of the exploiting countries and that of the colonies, so that very often, even perhaps in most cases, the bourgeoisie of the oppressed countries, although they also support national movements, nevertheless fight against all revolutionary movements and revolutionary classes with a certain degree of understanding and agreement with the imperialist bourgeoisie, that is to say together with it. 60. This Leninist observation is correct was said by Frantz Fanon who in 1960 in the THE PITFALLS OF NATIONAL CONSCIOUSNESS said, “the national middle class which takes over power at the end of the colonial regime is an under-developed middle class. It has practically no economic power, and in any case it is in no way commensurate (or equal) with the bourgeoisie (or capitalists) of the mother country which it hopes replace. In its woeful narcissism (or selfishness) the national middle class is easily convinced that it can adventurously replace the middle class of the mother country. But that same independence which literally drives it into a corner will give rise within its ranks to catastrophic reactions, and will oblige it send out frenzied (or hyperactive) appeals for help to the former mother countries”. 61. Frantz Fanon in the same article quoted above says, “The objective of nationalist parties as from a certain given period is, we have seen, strictly national. They mobilize the people with slogans of independence, and for the rest leave it to future events. When such parties are questioned on the economic programme of the state that they are clamouring for, or on the nature of the regime which they propose to install, they are incapable of replying, because, precisely, they are completely ignorant of the economy of their own country”. 62. Our immediate task include exposing the widely held view in South Africa that our policies are good, and only implementation should be perfected. This is not true, because the policies that protect white supremacy through protection of their economic interests cannot be good. Policies that promote neo-liberalism and blind following of the dictates of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund cannot be good policies. Policies that keep an absolute majority of our people under starvation and structural unemployment cannot be good. Policies that deny young entrepreneurs access to enterprise finance without sureties, which most do not have, cannot be good. Policies that keep workers wages in the mining sector, farms, factories, the police, the soldiers, teachers, doctors, nurses, private security, petrol attendants low cannot be good. 63. In 2014, less than 7% of South Africas land has been redistributed. The indications were that, by 2014, we will still not have exceeded 7% land redistribution, which will be 20 years since the democratic dispensation. If we continue with this trend and pace of 7% transfer every 20 years, it means we would have redistributed less than 30% of land in 100 years. In other words, in 100 years time, the inequalities between black people and white people will still remain, and this will automatically lead to continued racism and economic subjugation of blacks by white people, like it happened under apartheid. 64. This generation of Economic Freedom Fighters should never agree to such, because in 100 years time, all of us here will no longer be alive and our children and grandchildren will say we sold-out because they will still be living under white economic domination, more than 100 years after political independence and freedom. The struggle for land reform and transfer of land is long overdue and should be speeded up to avoid the conflicts that characterise many post-independence African states, nations and countries. We refuse to continue living like we are in a colony. 65. All these aspirations will require a disciplined, dedicated, determined, focused, fearless, and forward-looking cadres who are committed to economic emancipation of South Africa and the African continent. It will not be an easy route to be Activists and cadres of EFF because those with political power will do everything in their power to isolate, bastardise, banish, retrench, persecute, politically prosecute, tarnish and even kill Economic Freedom Fighters. If these people can kill their own members because of Tenders and control of State resources, they have potential to kill the real alternative, which will take away their ill-gotten wealth and access to resources. 66. We are however not scared and our unity, fearlessness, and dedication should inspire the whole generation to fight for what rightfully belongs to all South Africans. We will and have to share in South Africa’s wealth. We need to be organised, and need to be disciplined. 67. Our mission as EFF is to now speak to each and every person in South Africa, every citizen, every voter, including our children, grandparents, parents, relatives, neighbours, fellow churchgoers, workers, street sweepers about Economic Freedom Fighters, a giant movement which should and will emancipate South Africa from institutionalised starvation, structural unemployment, political directionlessness and mediocrity, institutionalised corruption, and hopelessness of the youth. 68. We need to go to every corner of South Africa, village to village, township to township, suburb to suburb, kraal to kraal, city to city, and everywhere where there is human life to speak and preach the message for economic freedom in our lifetime. We need to use all modes of transport to get to where we should preach the message of economic freedom. We will use bicycles, donkey-carts, cars, lorries, trucks, buses, trains, planes, helicopters, ships, boats and all forms of transport spreading the word for economic emancipation in our lifetime. 69. In this mission, we are under no illusion that spies, information peddlers, careerists, attention-seekers, and detractors will not join us. Our obligation as Economic Freedom Fighters is to convert all these into real Fighters for economic freedom in our lifetime. We will not turn away any member who comes to identify with the struggle for economic freedom in our lifetime, and will not force any member to join our movement. We will on a day to day preach the word for economic freedom in our lifetime, because the emancipation of South Africa will lead to the emancipation of the whole African continent. 70. We should also be careful of staff riders who join the organisation for personal gains. The EFF is a vehicle for real socialist transformation, and whoever is a member of the EFF should be a member par excellence, and not try to pursue individual or other organisational interests within the EFF. *We will post another speech again* #asijiki_long_wise_speech
Posted on: Sun, 14 Dec 2014 19:32:27 +0000
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