Johannesburg – Trade union federation Cosatu president Zingiswa Losi has paid a glowing tribute to ANC president Cyril Ramaphosa as he faces a tough re-election campaign when the governing party holds its elective conference in December.
Losi said Cosatu was of the view that Ramaphosa was the man for the job and that he was leading the country out of the woods, having inherited a mess left by the previous administration under Jacob Zuma.
“Cosatu’s central executive committee and national congress in September will deliberate on our stance towards the ANC’s national congress.
“The state has been seriously weakened by corruption and state capture. He has made positive progress in beginning to clean up the state,” said Losi.
She said workers had benefited substantially under Ramaphosa, noting that he had worked closely with Cosatu to pass the Minimum Wage Act, which benefitted more than 6-million workers.
This included providingrelief to 5.5-million workers during the lockdown, as well as the disbursement of the R350 SRD grant to over 10-million unemployed and drafting the Economic Recovery and Reconstruction Plan.
“In the last two years under his leadership, we have seen the biggest social expenditure since 1994 in response to Covid-19.
“Our work is made even easier by having a president who is accessible and listens. At times we disagree and when that happens, we state that bluntly, for
example, the reneging of the 2020 wage agreement in the public service.”
She was speaking to Sunday World recapping on her four years since assuming office, having been elected in 2018, making her the first female president of the federation.
She took over from the current Deputy Minister of Small Business Development Sdumo Dlamini. Losi faces her own re-election battle when the federation holds its elective conference in September.
Losi did not want to be drawn into responding to whether she will be seeking re-election.
Delving on the gains of the federation since she took office, Losi said under her tutelage the leadership collective had managed to stabilise Cosatu.
The federation’s membership took a nosedive during crippling divisions among top leadership, which subsequently led to Numsa walking out to stand on its own. Numsa was the biggest contributor of union fees.
The workers’ organisation also shed several thousand members due to leadership squabbles and skirmishes, but Losi said they had turned the corner.
“We have turned the tide and not only managed to stabilise Cosatu’s membership, but also grow it. Many workers have joined Cosatu affiliates during Covid-19 as their jobs, wages and health were under siege. Several unions in different sectors of the economy joined Cosatu.”
Another sore point for Cosatu is what seems to be a deliberate recruitment of foreigners in some of the economic sectors. Losi said this would also be one of the discussion points in the next conference.
“Government needs to enforce the labour laws, which deal with migrant workers. They need to hold offending employers to account. Migration is a challenge for all industrial economies.”
Losi also bemoaned the murder rate of public servants who lifted the lid on corruption, calling for drastic measures to protect whistleblowers.
“Samwu shop stewards were assassinated for blowing the whistle on corruption at VBS in Vhembe. Comrade Moss Phakoe was assassinated in the North-West, and no one was held accountable. Whistleblowers have been murdered in Gauteng and KZN. The SAPS and SSA need to do more otherwise people will be too afraid to blow the whistle. The law enforcement organs must be held accountable.”
On the ANC’s suspended MP Mervyn Dirks’ call for Ramaphosa’s head, Losi said any allegation of abuse of public funds should be investigated.
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