Aug-Sept 2014 K.indd

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AUG/SEPT 2014 • www.cosatu.org.za

Remarks by Neil Coleman, COSATU , to OR Tambo debate series on implementing the NDP 1 .

W e must never forget that our fi ght for justice in South Africa was in essence no different from that being fought by the Palestinian people. It is also important to acknowledge that however vicious the apartheid regime was, the level of violence being unleashed by the Israeli regime against unarmed civilians, exceeds the terror which the apartheid state used to try and break our peoples spirit of resistance. But just as the people of South Africa ultimately prevailed over apartheid, with the support of the international community, so too will the Palestinians ultimately win their struggle for justice and human rights. No matter how uncomfortable it may be, I urge all of you to fi nd out what is going on in Gaza, and act according to your conscience. I would like to congratulate the Wits School of Governance and the Oliver and Adelaide Tambo Foundation for taking this important initiative to open up a debate on a critical issue facing

carefully avoided ventilating the controversial elements of the Plan, and steered clear of real engagement with key constituencies such as organised labour. Many of the most contentious elements of the Plan were carefully buried in the massive 484 page document. By the ANC’s Mangaung Conference in 2012, the vast majority of leaders, let alone delegates, had not read the document. As with all policy, the devil is in the detail. What they thought they were endorsing, albeit with reservations and question marks, was a motherhood and apple pie vision. But many soon realised that the broad vision contained many problematic details. COSATU in discussing the NDP, recognised that the plan was a mixed bag, and didn’t reject it in its totality. But for a trade union federation, the critical issues obviously related to the Plans economic and labour market proposals. And this is what COSATU focused on. By the time COSATU produced its

our country. Prof Gumede’s background paper on international experiences of planning raises a number of important issues, but his discussion identi fi es in particular two pillars of development planning which are critical for our debate: fi rstly, that Development Plans around the world have been most successful where they have had broad legitimacy and social support. And secondly, the core of all institutionalised development planning has been the question of economic planning, focused on industrial strategy. And on both these fronts- securing broad social support, and advancing coherent economic planning proposals- our NDP runs into serious trouble. Let me deal fi rst with the question of legitimacy and support: Slick PR from the NPC Secretariat, and the former Minister, with unquestioning support from most of the media, business, and the conservative opposition parties, attempted with some success to manufacture a sense of broad social buy-in to the NDP. Government

Economy