Bheki Mtolo blamed Nehawu members for the service delivery failures earlier this year. (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G)
The ANC has moved to ease tensions with allies over the composition of the Government of National Unity (GNU) and block a R2-million lawsuit filed by one of Cosatu's largest umbrella organisations against the ANC's KwaZulu-Natal provincial secretary, Bheki Mtlo.
On Monday, ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula and Mr Mtolo met with the leadership of the National Union of Education, Health and Allied Workers (Nehawu) to discuss a court case that was filed after Mr Mtolo accused members of being responsible for service delivery failures at the union's political school.
Mutoro agreed to publicly apologise and retract his comments, while the union agreed to drop the defamation suit it had brought against him and both sides pledged to address the issue through their alliance going forward.
Speaking at a briefing at Luthuli House later the same day, Mbalula confirmed he had met with Mtolo, Nehawu union president Mike Sigange and other union leaders in an effort to calm the situation and prevent the matter from going to court.
Mbalula said that during a “lively” but “cordial” meeting it was agreed that Mtolo would offer an “unconditional, immediate and public apology” for his “regrettable” and “excessive” comments. Mbalula said Mtolo had not been forced to apologise and had agreed to apologise “through a negotiating process” with Nehawu and Cosatu leadership for the comments.
He said Mtolo's comments, made at the Nehawu School of Politics in response to criticism of the unity government by South African Communist Party (SACP) secretary-general Solly Mapaila, were “wrong”.
The agreement with Nwafu marked a “landmark breakthrough” in addressing relations between the ANC and its alliance partners following the “harmful” remarks.
“We agreed that the members of the alliance, and by extension its associated organisations, are independent organisations and are fully entitled to express their dissent to ANC policy positions and decisions,” Mbalula said.
“But allies have always differed on issues, and we have always addressed them by allowing space for political engagement. There is no reason why we cannot address current challenges in a similar way.”
On Mapaila calling the ANC “traitors” for working with the Democratic Alliance in a government of national unity, Mbalula said this was “unhelpful” and that Mapaila's criticism should be raised within the appropriate organisation.
Mbalula said dissent was acceptable but not “personal attacks and labelling”, adding that Mapaila's claim that President Cyril Ramaphosa heads the neoliberal wing within the ANC was incorrect.
He invited Mapaila to “discuss” his proposal within the alliance structures the ANC had sold out to him.
“We're not fighting each other. Let's be careful and be respectful of each other. … Let's not speak out of turn,” he said.
Mbalula said the Alliance Political Committee meeting would take place as scheduled, partners would discuss several issues and the secretariat would identify issues to be discussed in the coming weeks.
“We have agreed for a long time that we will convene a meeting of the alliance political committee. The secretariat will meet and draw up an agenda. The reason we are not meeting is because the SACP secretary-general has vehemently and consistently maintained his view that the GNU is a traitor,” he said.
“We will meet at the appropriate time. There is no crisis.”
Mbalula said the ANC had decided to convene the GNU as a strategic intervention to defend political power after losing its majority in the May 29 general election, but that it was not “permanent”.
“GNU will change over time,” he said.
But the GNU was functioning, and ministers were acting across party lines: “The country is stable. There are no blackouts. The lights are on. The government is functioning. The rand is stable. Jobs are being created.”
Mbalula said ministers who were “asleep on the job” should not complain that they were being outdone by colleagues from other parties.
“If people are sleeping on the job, blame them, don't blame the GNU, stop blaming other people who are working to the best of their ability to show what they can do for South Africa,” Mbalula said.
“GNU is functioning. It is stable. The lights are on and we are attracting investment. That is what is important for us to move forward. We discuss neoliberalism with Comrade Soly, but if he labels us, we will resist. GNU was not imposed on us by the NEC. It was discussed from a strategic perspective.”
Mbalula said South Africa had “moved forward” and embraced GNU, but “we are still in discussions with each other”.
Sihange and Nehau's KwaZulu-Natal provincial secretary, Andile Zulu, denied allegations that trade union organisations in the province were being mobilised to force the ANC to work with the Umkhonto we Sizwe party and the Economic Freedom Fighters.
Sigange said members were free to join individual political parties but the union would remain in the alliance and continue to support the ANC.
