Cape Town – The ANC’s alliance partner Cosatu said on Thursday it hadn’t taken a position on President Cyril Ramaphosa following the release of the Section 89 independent panel report on Phala Phala.
“This is a political issue. It needs a political process,” Cosatu’s spokesperson Sizwe Pamla said. The report found that the president had a prima facie case to answer.
Pamla confirmed that the labour federation hadn’t issued a press statement since the independent panel led by retired chief justice Sandile Ngcobo released its report on Wednesday.
Pamla said the panel’s report was released after Cosatu concluded its three-day central executive committee meeting.
“The report was released late and it was not discussed in the CEC meeting,” he said.
However, Pamla said the report would be sent to the federation’s affiliates and also allow the ANC national executive committee to discuss it and then look at its response.
“We were to have a caucus for the conference and look at the priority policies of the ANC. That caucus will now look at the ANC response.”
The caucus will also be used as an opportunity for Cosatu’s affiliates to deliberate on the Section 89 independent panel report.
Pamla said since the individual affiliates would first meet separately to take their position, they would meet together at their ANC caucus meeting where they would come up with the labour federation’s position on Phala Phala farmgate.
“Let’s bring them under one roof, discuss and then adopt our position. Those are the processes that will unfold.”
SACP national spokesperson Alex Mashilo’s cellphone went unanswered and he didn’t respond to text messages.
The embattled Ramaphosa had the backing of the ANC's two alliance partners, SACP and Cosatu, when he was campaigning for election as the president of the party.
Cape Times