Johannesburg - A countrywide protest against corruption, originally called by the National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa), has received support from 230 civil-society organisations despite reported threats and intimidation tactics.
The protest, which will include marches in Pretoria and Cape Town, and strikes in various sectors on September 30, is against what the coalition describes as rampant corruption in South Africa, which it believes is robbing people of potential jobs as well as helping to destroy the economy.
Numsa, flanked by labour federation Nactu, some of the leaders of Cosatu’s unions and axed Cosatu general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi, said it had submitted a strike notice to the National Economic Development and Labour Council in accordance with the Labour Relations Act.
However, it did not rule out the possibility of its plans being sabotaged.
“We will not be surprised if there’s a challenge to the legal process we followed to ensure workers are protected on the day of the strike. We hope all parties shall respect our right to take up socio-economic demands,” said Numsa president Andrew Chirwa.
The coalition also complained about intimidation against the business community to ensure they would not participate in the campaign.
“Business in South Africa has been thoroughly intimidated. They are so scared of even their own shadows. Very few of them, if any, would want to be identified openly with a march against government.
“That’s where they rely for their tenders and their survival,” said Vavi.
However, this had not stopped the coalition from calling for drastic action against businesses engaging in corrupt activities both in the public and private sectors.
The coalition is making several demands, including the need for the SA Revenue Service, the Reserve Bank and Financial Intelligence Centre to investigate illicit financial flows, transfer pricing and money laundering.
“In South Africa, there are people who are absolutely disgusted that billions of rand we so desperately need to create jobs gets secretly taken out of the economy to be put away from the arm’s length of our ordinary people who are facing a crisis of unemployment through this illicit trade as well as transfer pricing,” said Vavi.
The coalition would also demand the strengthening of all anti-corruption laws, a probe into the effects of corruption on the delivery of socio-economic services, a probe of apartheid-era corruption and economic crimes.
The current jobs crisis in the country, specifically in the mining and steel industries, would also take centre stage during the protests.
Chirwa estimated that 200 000 jobs were on the line in the steel industry, and if the entire value chain were considered, 800 000 jobs could be lost.
Unions in the industry are negotiating for a moratorium on retrenchments. The latest company warning of lay-offs is Evraz Highveld Steel.
Numsa also commented on the fraud and extortion charges faced by its KwaZulu-Natal secretary, Mbuso Ngubane, who allegedly illegally docked his bodyguard’s salary for 15 months.
Chirwa said the union would investigate the matter independently and would act “without fear or favour”.
The Star