President Cyril Ramaphosa faces increasing problems due to the ongoing scandal of foreign currency theft from his Phala Phala farm.
As if parliament’s section 89 impeachment committee that has been established to do a deep dive into the Phala Phala saga were not enough, the Council of the Left, established over the weekend by the Conference of the Left, has joined the fray.
The Conference of the Left, which comprised political formations, trade unions, and civil organisations, resolved that there was no full accountability on the Phala Phala matter.
Push for full accountability
Consequently, the conference mandated its newly formed council to explore all available options, including mass action, to ensure that full accountability is achieved.
This means that, for the first time, while Ramaphosa is dealing with the impeachment committee headache, a march headed to the seat of power at Union Buildings might be on the cards if the Council of the Left keeps to the declaration announced at the end of the Conference of the Left.
The Conference of the Left believed that there were political manoeuvres aimed at concealing the Phala Phala scandal.
“The conference further resolves that corruption and abuse of public trust, including unresolved scandals such as Phala Phala, must not be suppressed or normalised,” reads the Conference of the Left declaration.
“The Council of the Left must explore appropriate political, parliamentary, legal, and mass action avenues to ensure accountability, transparency, and public truth.”
The forces of the Council of the Left have already suffered their first defeat in their pursuit of accountability over the Phala Phala saga.
This was when their parliament components, such as the MKP, EFF, and United African Transformation (UAT), got defeated in their pursuit to install the leader of the UAT as chairperson of the impeachment committee; it fell flat when he got defeated 19-12 with the candidate of the GNU forces – Rise Mzansi’s Makashule Gana emerged victorious.
They are now left with other political options, such as increasing the pressure on the head of state when he appears before the impeachment committee and organising mass-action protests at his office in between.
Pushback against neoliberal policies
The Conference of the Left also made many other declarations that point to their coalition positioning itself as an opponent of the Ramaphosa-led GNU, which, as individual organisations, components of the Council of the Left have long characterised as a government hellbent on entrenching neoliberal policies that are against ordinary people and the working class.
“The conference declares the cost of living a central terrain of class struggle. “Food prices, electricity tariffs, transport costs, fuel, rent, water charges, and basic goods are shaped by monopoly control, profiteering, weak public regulation, financialisation, austerity, and private profit,.” reads the detailed declaration.
“The Conference commits to a common front against the rising cost of living. It calls for price regulation, action against price fixing and profiteering, stronger measures against monopoly control over essential goods, and the defence of affordable basic services as a right. Food, energy, water, sanitation, healthcare, education, housing, and transport must be treated as public goods, not commodities.
Call for a permanent universal basic income grant
“The conference opposes privatisation, prepaid exclusion, water and electricity disconnections, and the transfer of the capitalist crisis to working-class households.” It supports a permanent universal basic income grant set at a level that sustains dignity, financed through redistributive taxation on wealth, concentrated capital, and financial speculation as part of comprehensive social security,” the declaration continues.
The current Social Relief of Distress grant is inadequate and falls far below what is required for a dignified life. The conference observes that restrictive criteria, administrative barriers, and underfunding exclude millions who need income support. The struggle for a universal basic income grant must therefore be linked to expanded social protection, redistribution of wealth, land justice, and the construction of economic alternatives that place human need before profit.”
The Council of the Left is an implementing agent of the declarations made at the inaugural Conference of the Left.
- President Cyril Ramaphosa faces increasing pressure over the Phala Phala foreign currency theft scandal, with both a parliamentary impeachment committee and the newly formed Council of the Left demanding full accountability.
- The Council of the Left, created by the Conference of the Left (comprising political groups, trade unions, and civil organizations), is prepared to use all measures, including mass protests, to expose and address the scandal, accusing political forces of trying to cover it up.
- The Council's attempt to chair the impeachment committee was defeated in parliament, yet it plans to increase pressure through committee appearances and possible demonstrations at the Union Buildings.
- The Conference of the Left condemns neoliberal policies promoted by Ramaphosa's government, opposing austerity, privatization, price hikes, and monopoly profiteering, while advocating for affordable public services and stronger regulations.
- The conference calls for a permanent universal basic income grant funded by wealth redistribution, linking this demand to broader social protection, land justice, and economic reforms prioritizing human needs over profit.
