Johannesburg – Black people must benefit from the economic resources of the country, including access to their land.
This was the message in the annual ANC January 8 statement delivered by President Jacob Zuma during his party’s 105th birthday celebration at Orlando Stadium in Soweto on Sunday.
Zuma’s statement offered a multi-pronged approach to deal with the ills of the country. These included the inclusion of blacks in running the economy, strategies to fight crime and corruption, as well as returning land to black people.
Earlier, Zuma conceded that faction fighting within his party was affecting its fortunes.
“Our own research and interactions with members of the ANC demonstrate clearly that the people abhor the apparent preoccupation with personal gain. People are clear: their main priorities are jobs, fighting crime and corruption.
“Our task therefore is to grow the economy, create jobs and rigorously fight crime and corruption,” Zuma said.
It appears the outcome of the August 3 local government elections, which saw the ANC losing the key Joburg and Tshwane metros, had forced it to review its strategies and prioritise land and jobs.
Zuma said more decisive steps must and would be taken to promote greater economic inclusion and to advance ownership of the economy by blacks.
He predicted the economy was set to grow by 2.9 percent this year.
“As the governing party, the ANC must use the levers of state power to transform the economy and improve the lives of our people. It has a duty to use government incentives, procurement, infrastructure, investment and other measures to create new industries and expand existing industries.