By Alex Mashilo

This is the full version of ‘Denialism, embedded journalism and the EFF: a response to City Press political editor Rapule Tabane and his friends’. This piece was edited and published by the City Press on Sunday 26 July. The City Press, perhaps because of space, deleted all paragraphs exposing the EFF and the corruption its leader Julius Malema was embroiled in as clearly captured in the Public Protector’s report titled “On the point of tenders” (Report No: 10 of 2012/13). This full version contains the original text that the City Press edited out. In addition, some lines lost connection to, if not also, context, after the City Press edited the piece. In this full version the context is restored. 

In his antagonistic article against the SACP, “Communists protecting gravy train”, published by the City Press on 19 July, the newspaper’s political editor Rapule Tabane starts by labelling the Party’s Special National Congress held from 7-11 July a “charade”. He then labels the party “Blade Nzimande’s congregation”. Tabane grounds his thoughts in a quote attributed to his friend, Andile Mngxitama, labelling the SACP “the most weird bunch of capitalists” (sic).

Let us express sincere sympathy to Tabane for losing a friend from parliament and the EFF, Mngxitama, who was purged by the EFF from the parliament and the party. By the look of things, that must have been a painful moment to a friend. The pain might still be weighing like a nightmare on Tabane, causing monumental confusions between facts, fiction and the figment of his imagination.

Besides, the EFF is a party led by Julius Malema, who, according to the Public Protector’s report titled “On the point of tenders” (Report No: 10 of 2012/13), benefitted improperly from unlawful, fraudulent and corrupt conduct through his Ratanang Family Trust and shareholding in Guilder Investments. The corrupt tenderpreneuring plunder of Limpopo was one of the drivers that propelled the provincial government to the brink. Five provincial departments were put under national administration. Then the EFF was founded and would serve as Malema’s new source of income. Tabane’s friend, Mngxitama, his credible source of motivation in attacking the SACP, became part of the EFF. This until he was expelled, but not without declaring that “he will not go down without a fight”.

Tabane must read, and from the above too, and engage the SACP if he wants to know where is dialectical materialism in the party’s reports. Mngxitama has a good friend in Tabane, a fellow who propagates his figment of imagination as the political editor of the City Press. Birds of a feather flock together?

Tabane did not read the political report Comrade Blade Nzimande presented to the congress and associated political, economic and organisational documents. Had he read, he would have seen that the majority of workers joining the SACP are unemployed and that the party’s membership includes students, pensioners and employed workers. It is not only a nightmare and peer pressure but intellectual retardation to suggest that the SACP is a “bunch of capitalists”. 

Tabane alleges that the reports, and by extension its congress outcomes do not challenge monopoly capital. His bosses who control News24 - which owns City Press, and Multichoice - which is a pay-TV monopoly, both being the subsidiaries of Naspers, are not blinded by the factional wave that seem to have gained its hold on, and swept him away from objective reality. People in higher echelons of policy and management than Tabane both at News24 and Multichoice contacted the SACP after its congress to ask for engagements.

The Party congress not only received reports on, and challenging monopoly capital. It was specifically made clear, and agreed that, among others Naspers’ monopoly in the media industry must be ended.

On state power and electoral options, the resolution to reconfigure and strengthen the ANC-led alliance was unanimously adopted - Tabane was not there.

Lastly, Tabane personalises SACP and Cosatu decisions, isolates and attributes them to Nzimande and Cosatu President Comrade Sidumo Dlamini. In the absence of any compelling evidence, there is no other conclusion than that his denialism might as well be the function of embedded journalism, or at least subjectivity.

The truth is, rather than just Nzimande and Dlamini, SACP and Cosatu members have overwhelmingly spoken at the organisations’ respective special national congresses, regardless of whether Tabane and his ilk like the outcome or not!!

Alex Mashilo is SACP Spokesperson

Umsebenzi Online is the voice of the South African Working Class