Durban — Alliance partners, Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) and the South African Communist Party (SACP) have expressed concern over the ill-treatment of workers in ANC controlled municipalities, warning of the bad signal it was sending.
Delivering messages of support to mark the start of the ANC KZN elective conference on Friday evening, SACP KZN chairperson James Nxumalo said the ill-treatment of workers had the potential to backfire on the ANC.
“We have instances where the same workers are being reinstated by other parties when they are in power,” Nxumalo noted.
He called for improved working relations among alliance partners as a build-up to the 2024 general elections.
Cosatu provincial chairperson Phumlani Duma said they were concerned about the number of workers who had been dismissed in some municipalities including Ugu District, King Cetshwayo and Newcastle municipalities.
He suggested that the dismissals had more to do with political differences as opposed to wrongdoing on the part of workers.
“Don’t use your power to deal with workers because you differ politically with them, “ Duma cautioned.
The Cosatu chairperson appealed for thorough engagements in the conference to help regain lost political ground.
“Robustness cannot be wished away. It is important to save this movement because history will judge us,” Duma added.
He noted how the living costs had risen with people getting irritated, and called on the ANC to provide leadership in rescuing the country.
THE MERCURY