Friday January 05, 2024
The National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union [NEHAWU] joins millions of South Africans and progressives across the world in commemorating the 29th Anniversary of the passing of Comrade Joe Slovo on the 06th January 2024.
Comrade Slovo was the General Secretary and National Chairperson of the South African Communist Party [SACP], and also served as a National Executive Committee Member of the African National Congress.
An illuminative Revolutionary, Comrade Slovo was a renowned thinker, and the movement’s strategist and tactician. Indeed, Comrade Slovo made an immense and outstanding contribution to the liberation struggle. As NEHAWU, we remember and honour Comrade Slovo, a revolutionary par excellence with unparalleled struggle credentials, who dedicated his life to the struggle to liberate our people.
The 29th anniversary commemoration occurs when the country in a few months will be celebrating 30 Years of democracy. Therefore, it would be befitting to celebrate Comrade Slovo for his instrumental role in the struggle, and ushering-in a united, democratic, non-racial and non-sexist country.
We are commemorating Comrade Slovo amidst a devastating socio-economic crisis, which has brought about unprecedented suffocation and miseries to workers and the broader working-class in general, as a result of the capitalist system. Indeed, this socio-economic crisis confronting our class confirms our long-held assertion, that capitalism is a system in crises which is unable to provide any solutions to humanity.
The situation requires the SACP, to provide a strategic wayforward for the working-class, to navigate its way out of this disconcerting socio-economic crisis. Just like how Comrade Slovo provided strategic leadership for the movement in the struggle against apartheid, the SACP in this current epoch of our revolution is required to provide that strategic leadership for the working-class.
We reiterate our perspective as NEHAWU, that the SACP must be rooted amongst workers and the poor, leading campaigns on many fronts which include amongst others; campaigns against neoliberal agenda of austerity measures, financial sector campaigns, campaigns on the introduction of a universal basic income grant, campaigns on the national health insurance, and campaigns against privatisation of state owned entities, etc.
Lastly, we want to express our commitment to the imperative of building a powerful, socialist movement for workers and the poor. Let’s Build A Powerful, Socialist Movement for Workers and the Poor in Honour of Comrade Joe Slovo.
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Issued by NEHAWU Secretariat
Zola Saphetha (General Secretary) at 082 558 5968; December Mavuso (Deputy General Secretary) at 082 558 5969; Lwazi Nkolonzi (NEHAWU National Spokesperson) at 081 558 2335 or email: lwazin@nehawu.org.za