‘Force banks to invest in housing poor’

Zandile Shange

Delegates from different provinces sing at the SACPs 13th national congress at the University of Zululand. Picture: Zandile Shange

SAPA

Banks should be forced to invest in low-cost housing, SACP secretary general Blade Nzimande has said.

Addressing 2 000 delegates at the party’s 13th national congress at the University of Zululand near Empangeni, KwaZulu-Natal, yesterday, Nzimande said the state should move from merely regulating to actively directing the private sector.

Delivering his political report, he said the state had to direct the private sector towards developmental outcomes and objectives.

“Legislation must be made to force South African banks to invest in low-cost housing. It is, after all, the money of the working class.”

Nzimande said he had no doubt that the banks would oppose such measures, but the Financial Sector Charter had been a failure, especially since the government had been forced to guarantee bank investment in the poorer sectors of the community.

The Financial Sector Charter was adopted in 2004 as the financial service industry’s contribution to social transformation.

It commits the industry to meeting a range of transformation targets, some of which, such as broadening access to financial services, apply uniquely to financial services.

Referring to government employees, Nzimande said all public servants should declare their business interests. They should not work for the government if they were in business, he said.

“If you are in public service you can’t be in business, if you are in business you can’t be in public service – you must choose.”

Nzimande said all public servants should have to declare their business interests.

Only those at the level of directors in the public service are required to declare their interests.

Earlier, outgoing SACP chairman Gwede Mantashe urged party members to join the ANC.

“Our ability to influence and advance our agenda will be determined by our immersion in the structures and programmes of our alliance partners,” he said.

“The reality facing the party today… is that of communists who are not even members of the ANC.”

Mantashe said there were several SACP members at national level who held top positions in the ANC and cabinet.

But there was a lack of “cross-pollination” between the two parties at a provincial level, with the exception of the Eastern Cape.

Mantashe said his decision to step down as party chairman was not newsworthy. “This (decision) is born of practical consideration that one is doing a disservice to the party by being an absentee chairman.”

Julius Malema, expelled in April from the ANC and, by extension, the ANC Youth League, and former ANC parliamentary chief whip Tony Yengeni featured in songs at the start of the SACP’s elective conference.

“Asinandaba uMalema uyayizonda le party, asinanda uYengeni uyayizonda le party (Malema hates this party but we don’t care, Yengeni hates this party but we don’t care),” delegates sang.

In another song, they sang: “Malema ungayijahi impi ngoba iyabulala (Malema, don’t be in a hurry to fight in a war, because it kills).”

Yengeni is a member of the ANC’s national executive committee and in charge of its political education schools.

He lost his position as chief whip after failing to declare in Parliament’s register of members’ interests a discount he was given on a luxury car by a company connected to one of the bidders for arms contracts.

At the time, he was chairman of Parliament’s joint standing committee on defence, which was overseeing the arms deal.

Yengeni went to prison in 2006, and was released under correctional supervision after serving six months of his sentence.

In a song about President Jacob Zuma,

delegates sang: “Lizinja zilele kufokhona emzini kaMsholozo kodwa amagerilla abuyile (The enemy is near but MK is ready to fight for Msholozi).” Msholozi is Zuma’s clan name.