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Cape Town - Cosatu thought alienating Numsa would frighten the other eight unions into not going along with calling for a national congress, said labour columnist and author Terry Bell.
Explaining what actually happened on the marathon 15-hour meeting which resulted in Numsa's expulsion, Bell said what it did was give a tremendous fright to the ANC and particularly the SA Communist Party, "who never saw this coming".
He said former chair of the SACP and now secretary general of the ANC Gwede Mantashe and Cosatu president Sidumo Dlamini have tried to draw distinction between a special national congress and a national congress.
"Let's face it, a national congress is a national congress. The reason there's a provision in section 3 of their constitution is if there are critical matters that need to be dealt with, you can have a national congress outside of the normal 3-year span, and that's a special national congress, which is still a national congress," Bell explained.
"They don't want it to happen... and I suspect it's because they fear there may be a change of leadership... and maybe, just maybe the majority will decide to leave the ANC-led alliance.
"Now that will be a tremendous political blow to the ANC and to the SACP, but above all it will be a tremendous financial blow."
Bell estimated that Numsa's financial contribution alone to Cosatu is R1m a month. "It's big business."
Watch:
Bell said reasons for Numsa' expulsion go right back to 1985 when Cosatu was formed, "when we had unions who said we should not get involved in political parties at all".
Because they had a common goal to get rid of apartheid they became part of an alliance, but in 1993 Numsa put forth a resolution for Cosatu to withdraw from the alliance.
"The resolution was lost and Numsa went along with the majority," Bell said.
Now what has happened, he explained, is that there is increasing disillusionment on the ground, because the whole argument ever since then has been "if we stay within the ANC alliance with the SACP, we will be able to bring about change towards pro-worker policies" as they call it.
"If you look at the number of policies from government Cosatu opposes - from e-tolling to labour brokers to not getting a minimum wage negotiated at the moment - you get tremendous disillusionment on the ground, and Numsa has, in his opinion correctly realised that," Bell said.
When Cosatu general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi said they needed to change tact, he got himself suspended, which was turned over in court and that's how the whole thing started, Bell reckoned.
"It's got nothing to do with personalities, it's got to do with politics," Bell said, adding that the SACP sees taking control of the bureaucracies of all the unions as a way forward to socialism.
Watch:
On Vavi's leaked letter to Cosatu on the Numsa expulsion, Bell said it was "extremely diplomatic" and "from a public relations viewpoint an excellent letter".
"Vavi comes over as Mr Reasonable... standing for unity... but the sublime message is that it must be principled unity."
Bell said Vavi emerged as the principled leader who has made a stand, not publicly, but by writing them (Cosatu) a letter.
Bell speculated that perhaps this is "the beginnings of real democracy again, like the 1980s".
Watch:
On Numsa having to wait ten months to appeal its expulsion, Bell said according to section 14.2 of the constitution, Numsa have the right to appeal.
"What the executive can do is one of three grounds, none of which applies to Numsa in this case.
"They can recommend effectively suspension or expulsion; then if a union decides they have had enough, they can walk, but they have the right to appeal, and that goes to a national congress which can either ratify or overturn the decision.
"Which is why the other seven, maybe eight unions, are saying they want a national congress, because only then can that decision be put before the rank and file membership and decided on."
Watch:
Bell also said Cosatu's "one industry, one union" policy never worked.
Watch:
Explaining what actually happened on the marathon 15-hour meeting which resulted in Numsa's expulsion, Bell said what it did was give a tremendous fright to the ANC and particularly the SA Communist Party, "who never saw this coming".
He said former chair of the SACP and now secretary general of the ANC Gwede Mantashe and Cosatu president Sidumo Dlamini have tried to draw distinction between a special national congress and a national congress.
"Let's face it, a national congress is a national congress. The reason there's a provision in section 3 of their constitution is if there are critical matters that need to be dealt with, you can have a national congress outside of the normal 3-year span, and that's a special national congress, which is still a national congress," Bell explained.
"They don't want it to happen... and I suspect it's because they fear there may be a change of leadership... and maybe, just maybe the majority will decide to leave the ANC-led alliance.
"Now that will be a tremendous political blow to the ANC and to the SACP, but above all it will be a tremendous financial blow."
Bell estimated that Numsa's financial contribution alone to Cosatu is R1m a month. "It's big business."
Watch:
Bell said reasons for Numsa' expulsion go right back to 1985 when Cosatu was formed, "when we had unions who said we should not get involved in political parties at all".
Because they had a common goal to get rid of apartheid they became part of an alliance, but in 1993 Numsa put forth a resolution for Cosatu to withdraw from the alliance.
"The resolution was lost and Numsa went along with the majority," Bell said.
Now what has happened, he explained, is that there is increasing disillusionment on the ground, because the whole argument ever since then has been "if we stay within the ANC alliance with the SACP, we will be able to bring about change towards pro-worker policies" as they call it.
"If you look at the number of policies from government Cosatu opposes - from e-tolling to labour brokers to not getting a minimum wage negotiated at the moment - you get tremendous disillusionment on the ground, and Numsa has, in his opinion correctly realised that," Bell said.
When Cosatu general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi said they needed to change tact, he got himself suspended, which was turned over in court and that's how the whole thing started, Bell reckoned.
"It's got nothing to do with personalities, it's got to do with politics," Bell said, adding that the SACP sees taking control of the bureaucracies of all the unions as a way forward to socialism.
Watch:
On Vavi's leaked letter to Cosatu on the Numsa expulsion, Bell said it was "extremely diplomatic" and "from a public relations viewpoint an excellent letter".
"Vavi comes over as Mr Reasonable... standing for unity... but the sublime message is that it must be principled unity."
Bell said Vavi emerged as the principled leader who has made a stand, not publicly, but by writing them (Cosatu) a letter.
Bell speculated that perhaps this is "the beginnings of real democracy again, like the 1980s".
Watch:
On Numsa having to wait ten months to appeal its expulsion, Bell said according to section 14.2 of the constitution, Numsa have the right to appeal.
"What the executive can do is one of three grounds, none of which applies to Numsa in this case.
"They can recommend effectively suspension or expulsion; then if a union decides they have had enough, they can walk, but they have the right to appeal, and that goes to a national congress which can either ratify or overturn the decision.
"Which is why the other seven, maybe eight unions, are saying they want a national congress, because only then can that decision be put before the rank and file membership and decided on."
Watch:
Bell also said Cosatu's "one industry, one union" policy never worked.
Watch:
