Congress of the People in the Mother City

Archive for February, 2009

Congress of the People (COPE) as a Formation of the ANC

In Editorials on February 26, 2009 at 4:05 am

By  Lindikhaya Maqasha

South African politics have reached a stage where they demand a mind-shift from an era of political revolution to that of civil service; from democratic transition to human civility and dignity for all. The new political narrative requires political activist who have moved away from personality cults and empty rhetoric to efficient civic institutions for efficient service delivery, otherwise our future will soon be that of civic strife, and masses rising up to take what’s rightfully theirs.

The political rigidness and inability to read the mood of the people, together with social dynamics and trends of the times will only lead us to climax of the presently failing revolution. Hence the Congress of the People has come as the formation from the ANC’s failures and abuses. Even without Terror Lekota a change in the South African political landscape was bound to happen; it would have been just a matter of time. Sam Shilowa and Lekota furrowed on irrigated ground.

It doesn’t need an intelligent scholar / or sophisticated revolutionary to unpack the present scenario. One needs not to consult books on historical and dialectical materialism lessons as the enabling tools of analysis of our political problems are accessible even to a common man. It is the plurality of views that is presently redefining the South African politics for a new change.

The issue of firing Mbeki was not a major propelling reason for the formation of COPE, but just an event which triggered the momentum. In actual fact, it made a significant impact in strengthening demand for the formation of a new party. Deception and corruption cannot fool everybody all the time.

The option of reforming the ANC by continued search for unity and cohesion from within expired at its 52nd National Conference at Polokwane. It there became apparent that the division were too deep-rooted and involved different mindset. Later it also emerged that the causes of divisions were disappointingly about the control of state resources. Some COPE members must share the blame with those of the ANC on this issue, but it is an argument of another day.

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Who died and made you our judge

In Editorials on February 26, 2009 at 4:04 am

There are newspaper columnist who the more you try to follow the trend of their thinking you become less wiser. They lack principled thinking. Justice Malala from The Times is one of them. I for one am rather getting cloyed with his bawdily irreverent ranting, but that is just a matter of taste.

In the recent past few week I’ve been trying to understand Malala’s later-day found respect for the former president of our republic Thabo Mbeki, after spending the greater part of his columnist career castigating him. I thought that perhaps now we are about to jump from the skillet of TM to the fire of JZ he finally realized the, albeit compromised, worth of our former president. Fact is, it more of Malala’s contrarian character than any change of thought.

One of the things Malala has been hemming and hawing about is South Africa’s need for better quality leadership, less corruption, yada, yada. COPE, in the right reverend Mvume Dandala, comes with a leader that fits the slate, who does not even have the political baggage of Thabo Mbeki’s administration, Malala finds fault in what he calls his lack of political profile. ‘I am sorry, but all I can hear is the “pfffttt” of the gas running out of Cope. Firstly, the man has absolutely no profile among the masses of South Africa.’

Is he serious? I’ve heard this concern, from white people-which might be understandable since they know very little about, say Black Conscious politics-but hearing it from a black person who prides himself of knowing the history of this country is a little disappointing to say the least.

Then Malala says COPE made a mistake by making the announcement with lack of pomp and ceremony. ‘Even a wet-behind-the-ears political strategist could have advised Cope that unveiling a new leader – particularly one familiar only to parts of the middle classes and to the Methodist Church faithful, and not to the rest of the country – should have been done with proper fanfare. It should have been a co-ordinated, well thought-out process . . . The party’s actions over the past two weeks have been shambolic and amateurish to say the least.’

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FINAL ACCEPTANCE SPEECH – DR M DANDALA

In Speeches on February 24, 2009 at 5:40 pm

The reason I am standing before you today is because I believe it is my duty to do everything in my power to help our nation return to the dreams and hopes that we, as a nation, cherished in 1994. Those dreams were of a fair and just society. Our hopes were for efficient government, freedom from hunger and better lives for our children.
Have those dreams come true? Yes, we have made some progress, our young democracy is strong, but there is not a single South African who can honestly say they are not worried about the future. We live every day with corruption, fear and inefficiency and the situation keeps getting worse. This is what I hear the Congress of the People and many more South Africans saying.
We say enough is enough. Our vision for the future is of a government founded on the values of honesty, integrity and justice. That happens to be my personal philosophy and also our collective vision as COPE.
I joined COPE because I have spent my life working for peace, fighting for justice and seeking a society where integrity is the most important guiding philosophy. I found in COPE people who share these values. Voting for COPE gives South Africans a chance to vote for a new beginning – for a government where integrity guides us – not self interest. You will be voting for a robust fight against corruption. You will vote for a society where we can all stand together to build the principled society South Africa deserves.
The cornerstone of true democracy is the empowerment of the people to build a society they deserve. If COPE was promising to achieve these on its own I would be among the first to say, that taking current reality into account, these were yet again empty promises. But because COPE is committed to enabling our people to work towards these goals, I am bold enough to say that these will be achieved.
I believe that the time has come to honour the legacy for which so many gave their lives.

  • The time has come for change – the time has come for hope!
  • The time has come for a return to values that characterise clean governance.
  • The time has come – and it is long, long overdue – that our people have food security.
  • The time has come for efficient delivery to serve the people of South Africa.
  • The time has come to create a society that fulfills its promises to its young.
  • The time has come to create an authentically non-racial, non-sexist society.
  • The time has come to create a South Africa where public servants at every level serve the public and not their own pockets.
  • The time has come to create a South Africa where crime does not daily threaten the lives and possessions of our people.
  • The time has come for people to hold their parties and government in check.
  • The time has come to ensure that, institutions of our society, like the judiciary, IEC and the constitution are afforded the respect due to them. When these institutions are undermined, society disintegrates.
  • The time has come for a clear distinction to be made between party interests and state responsibilities.
  • The time has come for members of all political parties to have the right to gather in a violence-free environment.

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Fulfiling the mission

In Editorials on February 24, 2009 at 8:24 am

By Wiseman Gabavana

Frantz Fanon once wrote that; “Each generation must discover its mission, fulfil it or betray it.” South Africa’s mission since the founding of its full democratic state has been to establish and fulfill its institutions of civil liberty and freedom. This is why the founders of the now called Congress of the People were alarmed when the Tripartite Alliance started calling for political solutions for cases of alleged corruption against the ANC leader Jacob Zuma.

The Secretary General of the ANC went a step further by calling judges ‘counter-revolutionary’. This was tantamount to assaulting the judiciary, which in turn threatened pave way for a reversal of the democratic gains made by South Africa since 1994. To members of COPE this would have been Fanon’s betrayal of our generations’ mission.

One of the hallmarks of our negotiated settlement was the establishment of the principle of constitutional democracy, with the Bill of Rights as the cornerstone of the supreme law of the land. The ANC government with all these calls is in a dangerous path suppressing our rights while championing them in rhetoric. The clear example would be the continuance of democratic subversion of parliamentary supremacy to the realms of a rubber stamp as legally engineered by the apartheid regime.

The primary task of our democratic institutions should be to give effect to democratic values, ethics and respect for the rule of law and equality of all before it. The stratification of our institutions of democracy in this context is not ambivalent or ambiguous; the Judiciary, Executive and the Legislature have specific roles and functions. Our constitution emphasizes the independence of the judiciary and there is a clear scope for it to adjudicate issues of legal controversy. The need to respect the independence of the judiciary and the rule of law must go beyond rhetoric.

It goes without saying that to accomplish the task of fulfilling our democratic mission, civil service must be depoliticized. An interventionists state heavily relies on the competence of its civil service to accomplish its mission, otherwise all the talk and craft of good policies is just as good as stillborn. Only this way will we accomplish the revolutionary task of shepherding the country from democratic transition to consolidation.

We must make sure that our public representatives respect the supremacy of the Bill of Rights in our constitution as one of the greatest achievements of the democratic transitional epoch since 1994. The political climate in our country can either reaffirm our hard earned human rights or cause them to ebb away. The latter scenario would put South Africa in a position where it would cease being the exception to the continental syndrome of undermining post independence democratic institutions.

Progressive leadership is needed to instill an ethic of constitutional democratic respect, underpinned by the democratic values enshrined in the Bill of Rights. No one should undermine the imperatives of the Bill of Rights and take our constitutional democracy for granted. If a government is unable to advance the agenda of its good policies through efficient service delivery, even if it made the breakthrough to democratic transition, it fails its mission and betrays purpose.

10 Pillars of Leadership

In Editorials on February 23, 2009 at 1:45 pm

Farouk Cassim & Mphuthumi Ntabeni

What has become apparent in the recent years is that South Africa, indeed the world, has a crisis of political leadership. The United States of America has upped the ante by responding to this challenge with a man of Barack Obama’s caliber. The world looks up to South Africa to set up the tone for the African continent. South Africa cannot fail to meet up to this challenge by presenting to the world men of less than rigorous moral quality.

The world has entered a season of change and hope. It’d be sad for our country to miss out on this global momentum. Ranting about democracy is no longer enough; we need real practice to put paid to our words. South Africa needs, deserves, leaders who can stand up to the qualities we shall tabulate with ten fingers. These are legs to stand on for quality leadership:

1. Accountability

  • All those who present themselves as candidates must have no criminal record; no charges hanging over them, and be willing to subject themselves to an independent panel for scrutiny of personal and public history.
  • The political parties must make a full disclosure of the source of its funds for the sake of total transparency, and to assure South Africans it has their interest at heart without shoddy influence.
  • The electoral laws must change to accommodate the outcry for public participation in electing the President, Premiers and Mayors. Also, half of the Parliamentary representatives must be directly elected by their constituencies to improve accountable.

“Accountability breeds response-ability.”
Stephen R. Covey

“It is not only what we do,
but also what we do not do,
for which we are accountable.”
Moliere

2. Behaviour

“Character, in the long run, is the decisive factor in the life of an individual and of nations alike.”
Theodore Roosevelt

  • The behavior of political leaders must above reproach on moral and ethical issues.
  • Leaders should behave in a respectful, transparent, responsible, and honest manner when dealing with their constituents.
  • Representatives must at all times be civil and disciplined.
  • Drunkenness, drug abuse, abuse of women and children, reckless speech, reckless driving, and reckless behaviour are all totally unacceptable.
  • Young people should show appropriate respect for their elders, irrespective of political persuasion.

“Behaviour is a mirror in which every one displays his own image.”
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe


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WHY DEMOCRACY THRIVES IN COPE

In Editorials on February 22, 2009 at 8:54 am

Each person in a party serves a particular purpose. Lekota will indeed go down in history as the man who  had the balls to rise in defence of our democracy. He caused the total alteration of our political landscape.

Shilowa, as reported in today’s story, declined the nomination in order that a greater cause could be served. History will honour him for his far sightedness.

That Bishop Dandala was finally chosen by the CNC delegates must indicate that COPE is concerned about burying Polokwane once and for all. As COPE is presenting a new AGENDA, the electoral battle with the ANC has to be about new and current issues. Dandala will be able to shift the focus of the debate to the new agenda.

There will obviously be tensions inside COPE until such time as the elective conference takes place in twenty two months and the leadership is democratically and transparently elected. This should not inhibit robust debates and neither should such debates be presented as tensions within the party. It is in the very nature of politics that people should argue and debate. Lekota has ensured the opening up of the democratic space within the party.

The fact that within COPE the list process will be determined not by the leader but by a panel that is independent, means that within COPE the democratic space will remain open. In every other political party members who get to serve in a legislature will remain beholden and subservient to the leader. Such members will quietly tow the party line.

Will it better for South Africa to have a party where members are subservient or where they freely assert their independence? COPE has created democratic space and as may be seen in todat’s story, it has allowed for many views and ideas to be openly debated and reported.

For COPE to place its best foot forward there has to be such robust debates. If the leader of the party had the sole power to finalise the list such a debate that is taking place would never have got started.

It is right and proper that those who hold a particular view must be able to convince everyone else as to the merits of those views. The most persuasive argument then wins the day. That is democracy.

People of South Africa should appreciate that at least one single party in South Africa has opened up the democratic space. For me, this is indeed a pivotal issue. Imagine someone like me being in a party where debate is stifled. What would I do?

Many more people like myself who like matters to be thoroughly debated joined COPE to exercise such freedom.

The healthy tension within COPE is a clear manifestation of democracy at work. The issue that the leaders of COPE are discussing is tough but the robust manner in which it is being discussed is totally gratifying.


The Riot of Excess in the Gotham Parish

In Editorials on February 19, 2009 at 1:47 pm

As the fast spreading rot within the Gotham parish becomes more glaring in Carl Neihaus-Paul Matshatile saga COPE’s message of clean governance and accountability becomes urgent. Accountability means very little in the Gotham parish, hence they’re all of a sudden preaching the value of repentance for a weeping fraudster, and political solutions for their besotted leader. It’d be laughable if it were not so tragic. They are definitely overshooting themselves here, and believing them would be like drinking the wine of error from a drunken teacher.

Why, you ask yourself, would a political party work so hard in ruining itself? I’ll enlighten you. This is about the so called ‘Zuma Project.’ In that project the words of Hannibal in Ennius are more appropriate: Hostem qui feriet erit mihi Carthaginensis. [Whomever strikes down an enemy shall be in my eyes a Carthaginian.] And so the mercenaries stand under the banner of the kangaman. Anyone and everyone who is for him is a Carthaginians (with my apologies to the ancient fine men of North Africa), so long as they are ready to strike at the enemy. It now puts paid to Neihaus’ all of a sudden enthusiasm for JZ; you know what they say about feathers of the same bird flocking together.

The Zumarites are an absurd, ridiculous group that empties even the little honour left in our politics. I’d gladly give them permission to be fools if what they do was not in tremendous public’s expense. Fraud and rapine is the order of the day with the Gotham parish; like a malignant tumour at the body politic of our country they are growing fatal.

The only thing they have going for them is that they are a reflection of the collective character of those who elected them to power. If these are the majority, as we shall soon find out on the 22 April 2009 (Election date), then we’re in deeper trouble than we imagine. Until then I call them the boils of our maturing democracy with hesitant irony.

Coming as the proverbial balm of Gilead against this riot of excess in the Gotham parish is COPE’s 10 pillars of stand point:

A – Accountability
Ministers, MPs, Councillors must answer to the people

B – Behaviour
Humble servants with integrity.

C – Character
Moral, loyal, faithful & trustworthy leaders.

D – Democracy
Allowing diverse viewpoints to prevail.

E – Ethics
Honesty & congruency of actions with words.

F – Focus
Efficient capable professionalism.

G – Growth
Individual, country, economy & convergence of cultures.

H – Humanity
Ubuntu & tolerance of different identities.

I – Integrity
Upright & reliable.

J – Justice
Natural and legal justice

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Reasoning the Rights: The JZ legal Drama

In Editorials on February 19, 2009 at 1:39 pm

by Helen Oyitanda Ilitha

The only good thing provided by the narrowing focus and heightening tensions brought about the Jacob Zuma legal dramas is that it is forcing the nation to get a better understanding of its own laws.

At the recent Critical Thinkers Forum hosted by the Mail & Guardian and IDASA responding to the State of the Nation Address, one affronted young ANC supporter demanded to know of the opposition parties why they claimed to be defending the Constitution when they were actually undermining it by refusing to accept that JZ was innocent until proven guilty!

Jussive tone aside, this latest accusation from the ruling party leaves me wondering why the ANC are so keen to project the notion that they don’t really understand the Constitution they’ve been governing in terms of since 4 February 1997. And as I saw the bemused head shakes and shocked expressions on the faces of the opposition leaders, it dawned on me that the ANC Comrades really need a quick lecture on the provisions of Section 35, sub section 3, sub sub section h.

The Right to be presumed innocent can be found deeply embedded in the Constitution, and it actually says:

35.3 Every accused person has a right to a fair trial, which includes the right …
h. to be presumed innocent, to remain silent, and not to testify during the proceedings

By now the clever ones in the class will have noticed that the right to be presumed innocent is very contextualised within the proceedings of the criminal trial rather than soup to nuts of things in general. Someone with criminal charges hanging over them has a right to be expect society to regard them as innocent of any liability arising from the event until finally convicted. The right to be presumed innocent is not a Proudly South African concept, but recognised in various forms throughout most jurisdictions of the world; so there is really no reason for ANC confusion as to its meaning.

And if we pan back a little and consider all the other rights in section 35 sub section 3, we will see that collectively they create a little check list of rights for the accused within the trial to ensure that a Kafkaesque type nightmare does occur. For example, the accused is:
a. to be informed of the charge with sufficient detail to answer it;

k. to be tried in a language that the accused person understands or, if that is not practicable, to have the proceedings interpreted in that language;

I. to adduce and challenge evidence;

and the one JZ has milked more than anyone in the history of legal aid:

g. to have a legal practitioner assigned to the accused person by the state and at state expense, if substantial injustice would otherwise result, and to be informed of this right promptly.

There is no doubt that these rights are prescribing the environment within the criminal court must operate from the accused’s entry to the criminal justice system thru to his or her exit, whether as a convicted or free person. So “presumed innocent” means that until the end of the fair trial and the judicial officer – the Judge or Magistrate – has analysed all the evidence and found the accused guilty, he or she cannot be sentenced, fined or cautioned. It is also why the Prosecutor must prove the charges not the accused having to prove his or her innocence.
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Ugotywa usemtsha

In Editorials on February 16, 2009 at 10:43 am

At the discussions of COPE 2009 Volunteer workshop held at Khayelitsha last Saturday frustration about the party’s visibility through things like t-shirts and sign posts was uppermost. Most activists also lamented the lack of political consultation about crucial decisions. There was also mounting anger against the reported unending internal strife within the interim provincial leadership.

Most people gave an impression that the agreed conduct for party election processes were not being adhered to by the extreme tussles and backbiting canvassing tactics of party list nominees. They felt the teething stage of the new party no longer suffice as an explanation.

However it must be noted that the party agenda and code of conduct gives clear direction of what processes should be followed. It is individuals who organise themselves into factions behind certain leaders that is the problem.

The issue of visibility is entailed on the availability of material resources. Every COPE member is expected to be an activist, that is to own up to the financial challenges of the party. Until COPE members make it their second nature to fund their organisation with constant donations they’ll never take full ownership of it and its activities.

Even the issue of strife and tussle for party election list depends on party members. Factions can exist only where they’ve a following. It is incumbent upon ordinary members of the party to shun factions and follow the due processes of party conduct. COPE members must familiarise themselves with the character of their organisation and employ hostile attitude to deviations from it.

Perhaps it is high time we revisit the mood and speeches of Sandton Convention on that momentous November day last year. Dr. Faruok Cassim helped in simplifying and recalling the rock we were hewn from when in Khayelitsha he discussed the document of 10 Pillars of COPE’s character. Let us familiarise ourselves with it so as to be sure we are not lured by too ambitious people who are only after their own interest at the detriment of the party character.

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Tearing at the wick of our learning

In Editorials on February 13, 2009 at 5:12 pm

I was fascinated by the scriptive evaluation of the political metamorphosis by the Democratic Alliance (DA) media officer, Lindiwe Mazibuko, in Saturday Argus [07 February 2009]. She gives an account of her nerve-racking, ‘guilt ridden’ journey from being a staunch supporter of the African National Congress (ANC) to Hellen Zille enamored official of the DA. You sympathize with her arduous intellectual and moral effort (who said it was an easy thing for a black person to join a predominantly white liberal party). In the end Ms Mazibuko gives an impression of having found a way to reconcile her identity with the political composite of liberal politics through study.

Frankly I’m not surprised that a character like Ms Mazibuko would be desponded with the politics of the ANC, where bold ignorance of the like of Malema, and lack of efficiency have usurped proper reasoning. But am more interested on the trick she claims to have pulled, that of a black person joining white liberal politics without jettisoning their heritage, cultural, political, and otherwise. Unfortunately, Ms Mazibuko does not elaborate on this issue.

There’s no denying the fact that politics, like culture, is the product of collective negotiation and exchange between the past, present and future. By past I mean experience of collective value that go beyond patterns of political heroism and superannuated nostalgia. The present also has to mean much more than attitudinizing against the failures of the Liberation Movement and moral deficiency and its present leadership.

There’s much value to be sieved from both nationalistic and liberal politics, the integration of which forms progressive politics suited for the status quo of South African state. This, to me, is the real identity of COPE, and why COPE is better suited to consolidation and advancement the hard won gains of our freedom. The integration of our political trends of politics have given birth to something beautiful for this country, something of a new narrative to tackle (post) modern challenges. This is COPE. COPE is placed in such opportune position of our history and political geography that it does not neglect any of our collective political and cultural heritage as South Africans, white, black and in between.
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Evil triumphs when good people do nothing

In News on February 12, 2009 at 6:34 am

by Charlotte Luzuka

When Obama won the 2008 US elections on 4 November 2008, I was elated. Not because I believed he would bring about miracles for Africa, not because he is black, but because he represented proof that when people act, change can happen.

A friend of mine responded to a comment that it was pointless to register and vote when it was inevitable that the ANC would win the 2009 South African elections, by quoting “Evil triumphs when good men do nothing”. Now she was not inferring that the ANC is evil, however what she was inferring is that change can only occur through action. And this is what the Democrats win in the US represented. Change through action.

I recently had a conversation with a lady who stated that she would not vote in the next elections as she and her father felt that there was no party that represented their beliefs, which are entrenched in their religion.

Now I have to admit that I am highly disappointed whenever I hear of someone not voting because it feels like they are taking for granted the fact that they now have a right to vote and a right to enact change in their government, nationally and provincially, in their municipality and in their ward.

In South Africa from 1910 until 1930 only white men where allowed to vote in three provinces and a restricted number of black and coloured men were allowed to vote in the Cape Province. In 1930, white women were given a right to vote, however black men were subsequently disempowered to vote in 1939.

When the National Party came into power in 1948, coloured males were struck off the voters roll. After a referendum in 1983, limited political influence was given to the coloured and Indian population and only after the 1992 referendum that ended the apartheid regime, where black people allowed to vote and coloured and Indians given more political freedom.
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LOCAL GOVT ELECTIONS

In Editorials on February 8, 2009 at 7:09 am

COPE has sent the ANC a warning. Here are the figures for the seventeen wards in which the ANC, COPE and the ID took part. You judge for yourself:

VOTERS

COPE

ANC

ID

3337

466

1322

3581

331

960

138

1696

341

268

425

2660

267

604

358

2431

283

533

395

3823

572

990

180

3375

511

525

248

3645

993

828

341

3510

482

1396

3

2265

386

569

143

2697

613

484

332

1222

276

384

5645

573

1597

51

4134

400

1377

2896

204

832

7

3995

451

1116

18

2806

356

766

53718

7149

14551

2639

29.4%

59.8%

10.8%

Never again shall it be that one party will hold so much power over all of us. Henceforth there shall be a balance of power. COPE is here to break the monopoly of power that the ANC had over the last fifteen years.

You can help enormously by canvassing for COPE


IT’S MAKE OR BREAK TIME

In Editorials on February 8, 2009 at 6:55 am

There’s never been an election as important as the one we are approaching. The world economy is in turmoil and no country on earth is going to escape the ravages of the downturn. At home, to add to the heap of problems we face, the government failed to meet the people’s expectations over the last fifteen years. Those who fared reasonably well saw their homes and businesses being invaded by criminals with impunity. The criminals had declared war on the civilian population. Government’s response has been ineffectual and inadequate.  As though this was not bad enough, the extent of the corruption within government is horrifying.

It is time for a new government to clean up the mess and rebuild trust with the people. This is why COPE is going out of its way to ensure optimal accountability.

COPE is demanding that all its candidates are tax compliant, free of any charges or criminal records, and capable. A panel of academic experts will thoroughly scrutinise each candidate and thereafter the South African public will have the opportunity to object to any name on the basis of factual evidence.

COPE is also demanding that all parties disclose their source of funding so that dirty money does not infect the functioning of government.

As a voter you can see how this country is slipping. It is for you to recognise that it is make or break time. If you underestimate how bad the situation really is, you may help to precipitate our country’s downfall. Our country and the times demand a change of government. Please support COPE and take a little time off to canvass support for COPE. Each one reach one!


IS COPE THE ANC IN ANOTHER GUISE?

In Editorials on February 5, 2009 at 9:22 am

The fact that COPE was formed by those who broke away from ANC, leads people to believe mistakenly that COPE is the ANC in another guise. This is not so. COPE wishes to alter the functioning of politics in the following way -

ACCOUNTABILITY

COPE wants to alter the electoral system so that half the MPS, all the mayors, the Premiers, and the President are directly elected by the people and therefore directly accountable to the people. COPE also demands that all those who appear on its lists be tax compliant and free of any criminal records. It is also compulsory for all COPE MPs to undertake to report back to the people on a regular and structured basis. COPE leaders will be servants of the people.

BALANCE OF POWER

COPE is positioning itself as a political home for people of all races, colour, creed and class. COPE recognises that only a second mass movement will succeed in keeping the ANC honest and committed to its promises. The combination of DA, IFP, ID, UDM etc have not been able to stop the ANC from squashing the Scorpions. They will also not be able to stop Vusi Pikoli being fired. A bigger and more power political force has to emerge to alter the status quo.

CONSTITUTIONALITY

COPE stands in resolute defence of our national Constitution. We believe implicitly in the separation of powers. A COPE led Executive will not coerce the legislature and the Judiciary in respect of any issue.  COPE also undertakes to ensure that the “people shall govern” through effective participatory politics. COPE will play it by the book and thereby safeguard and defend our Constitution.

DELIVERY

COPE will reverse the ANC’s policy of cadre deployment. Mantashe, in the Cape Argus on 04.02.2009 stated that the ANC would continue to place ANC members in top jobs. COPE wants to accelerate delivery and therefore insists that only professionals are appointed to top positions. COPE places the highest premium on delivery.
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BEE This! BEE That! We say GEE or bust!

In Editorials on February 4, 2009 at 10:58 pm

There has been a lot of COPE say this or that about Affirmative action, so we’ve decided the first issues of Copetown to be dedicated to this topic; which is why we invite those who are interested to attend a talk by J.J. Tabane in Cape Town on the 04 feb 2009 (find details on the coming events).

Give the word to Madam Zille and Jimmy Manyi, examples of different extremes in criticizing Cope on the topic. Their criticism suggests that COPE in its endeavour of taking the mean between nationalist and liberal politics must be doing something right. For more clarity, COPE’s Draft Policy Document has this to say on the BEE issue: ‘While in the recent past there has arisen a small group of empowered blacks or the so-called black elite, and there are signs that generally the middle-class is on the rise . . . there remains high levels of inequalities in South Africa. Race politics cannot be ignored; they still loom large. However, with class inequalities gaining prominence, race is gradually losing weight as a factor of inequality. What this means is that social tensions are not only limited to inter-race tensions; intra-race tensions along class lines are also slowly emerging. . .’

There’s another reality that is gradually emerging in South Africa – that of ‘poor whites problem’. COPE policy draft document says; ‘This also should not be overlooked on the account of the state’s Constitution imperatives however emotive this issue can be. This should be treated as part of the wider problem of rising class inequalities and poverty in society rather a special case . . . [All] this requires us to revisit some of the elements of economic policy, notably the BEE and give more meaningful effect to its broad-based component as well as to examine its social costs with respect of racial harmony.’ To an extent that it is suggested by Farouk Cassim, that we should henceforth call this Grassroots Economic Empowerment (GEE) instead of BEE to clarify our stand of wishing to include all disadvantage people for empowerment.
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