Cosatu president, Sdumo Dlamini says unity must be at the centre of the ANC’s Mangaung Conference next month if radical economic transformation is to be achieved. He was addressing people in Atlantis on the Cape West Coast during the funeral service of former ANC Member of Parliament, Danny Olifant.
Dlamini says Olifant was committed to fighting for an equal share in the country’s economy. “Our planning is not just about Mangaung. We are planning beyond Mangaung that South Africa requires a radical transformation. The wealth of this country still remains in the hands of the few who happens to be males and whites. That has got to be changed by the ANC. The ANC shall not be able to do so if the ANC itself does not allow us to help it to be united,” says Dlamini. The ruling party is set to hold its 53rd national conference from December 16-20 at the University of Free State, Bloemfontein. The National Conference is the supreme ruling and controlling body of the ANC and shall, among other things, elect the National Executive Committee (NEC) in accordance with Rule 11.4 of the party’s constitution. ANC secretary-general Gwede Mantashe confirmed to the media after its one-day NEC meeting in September that party membership had surged to 1 220 057. At its January 8 celebrations at the beginning of the year, the figure stood at just over a million members, 1 027 389. For the 2012 National Conference, there will be 4500 voting delegates. Provinces constitute just over 91% of that number with the remaining figure sourced from the party’s leadership structures and leagues.
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