OUTGOING SACP GENERAL SECRETARY NZIMANDE OPEN TO REDEPLOYMENT

This follows his earlier remarks that he is ready to step down from the helm of the party, a post he held for 24 years.

FILE: SACP SG Blade Nzimande. Picture: @SACP1921/Twitter

Theto Mahlakoana

JOHANNESBURG - Outgoing South African Communist Party (SACP) general secretary Blade Nzimande has confirmed that he is ready to be redeployed to another position in the party.

This follows his earlier remarks that he is ready to step down from the helm of the party, a post he held for 24 years.

Nzimande told reporters at a briefing ahead of the start of the party’s congress in Boksburg, east of Johannesburg, on Wednesday that he is ready to go wherever congress says.

It appears attempts by the SACP’s provincial secretaries to avoid a leadership contest at the 15th national congress have failed.

The leaders have been meeting in the build-up to the conference to lobby those in support of Nzimande’s return as national chairperson to abandon their campaign.

Sources say this was done in the interest of the party’s renewal with those against Nzimande’s return in support of the election of former National Union of Mineworkers general secretary Frans Baleni.

Nzimande told reporters that he is not interested in positions nor are the other leaders of the party.

However, he is willing to take up any role he is elected to: “I have voluntarily stepped down; I wasn’t pushed, I just said it is time for change. I said I am available to the communist party to deploy me in it’s own structures in this congress as it sees fit. Not because I am looking for a position.”

The SACP is in a tripartite alliance with the ANC and Cosatu. Ordinarily, leaders of the party easily make it onto ANC deployment lists for top positions or parliamentary seats.