Despite being disillusioned with their ally in government, the SACP and the labour federation are unlikely to leave the tripartite alliance
The South African Communist Party (SACP) will use its December conference to review its decades-long relationship with the ANC, over concerns that the partnership has undermined its political independence and diluted its influence.
The party will gather for its fifth Special National Congress at Birchwood Hotel in Ekurhuleni from 11 to 14 December in part to discuss how the ANC has blurred its identity and limited its ability to engage effectively with the working class.
This comes as the Tripartite Alliance, which includes the ANC, SACP and Cosatu, faces unprecedented challenges, including the ANC’s decision to go into the government of unity with the Democratic Alliance (DA), the party’s declining electoral performance and growing voter disillusionment.
“The influence of its coalition partners will more than likely be towards an even stronger adherence to key neoliberal policy prescripts, including stricter austerity — justified as a more determined push to meet in particular debt-reduction targets — and notions of ‘working with’ profit-seeking capital in the hope of leveraging funds to fill an infrastructure ‘funding gap’ now said to be north of a trillion rand,” it said in a pre-conference discussion document.
The party said its identity as an independent political entity had diminished and that it is increasingly seen as an extension of the ANC, a perception which has undermined its ability to mobilise support and maintain relevance.
“In a less flattering way, certainly among print-media reading middle strata, we might be thought of as a party that supposedly keeps threatening to break from the ANC, but never does. This is certainly the way in which prominent analysts in the media (black and
white) seek to characterise the SACP,” the document reads.
The party added that the ANC’s historical low of 40% in the 2024 national elections has intensified questions about the alliance’s effectiveness, adding that its long-standing ties to the ANC, once a strategic asset, now threaten to overshadow its distinct voice and mission.
The party attributed the ANC’s decline to voter frustration with poor service delivery, economic stagnation and the rise of new political movements, including the isiZulu-focused uMkhonto weSizwe party (MK) party, which has gained significant traction in KwaZulu-Natal.
While the party does not advocate splitting the alliance, it emphasised the need to redefine its role and regain its independence.
It proposes a strategic pivot ahead of the 2026 local government elections, including the establishment of an election management structure and a renewed focus on mobilising working-class voters.
“The SACP will contribute to the alliance’s election manifesto for the 2026 local government elections and may also consider issuing a separate ‘Local Government Statement’ to emphasise specific socialist perspectives,” the document read.
It added that it would also craft a manifesto rooted in socialist principles, with a focus on equitable service delivery and local accountability.
While the party has ruled out forming coalitions with the DA or the MK party, it emphasised the need to engage with like-minded organisations beyond its traditional alliance partners. These included trade unions across various federations, progressive NGOs and research institutions.
Such collaborations would align with shared goals, including advocating for a universal basic income grant, expanding public employment programmes, opposing budget cuts affecting workers and the poor and advancing its financial sector campaign.
“We need to recognise that the old adage ‘we won’t be able to win in the boardroom what we have not won on the ground’ is likely to be even more true now. We need to acknowledge that working-class power and influence has been declining for some time.
“Without building more power on the ground, left alliance partners are likely to have less influence on government economic policy than does the DA,” it said.
“In many ways, power has shifted downwards but in a perverse manner, not leading to the popular democracy and rank-and-file participation we had hoped for. In some respects, ‘command’ has shifted to regions and branches, with the authority and strategic capacity of the ANC’s [national executive committee] considerably eroded, making matters in some sense worse, with the ‘kingmakers’ being less sophisticated.
“If the ANC has become increasingly federalised, or even sub-federalised, what about the [SACP]? Compared to the earlier periods considered, the party now manages its congresses through provincial leaderships and it depends considerably on regular organisational reporting on provincial self-reporting. There is also not always transparent reporting on party provincial funding,” the party said.
Source:
mg.co.za
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