EFF statement on the 63rd Anniversary of the Freedom Charter (26.06.2018)

We thought we seen the worst; but the here comes the 20 Point Programme from Mzee!

Sometimes I think President Museveni is a bit too smart for himself, that must be it, as he have since start of his reign added and amended more plans than useful laws. That is something the world should know by now. He entered his first term after rebellion with the 10-Point Program that was supposed to reinvent and remake the democratic, accountability and facilitate the development of Uganda. Something that has been stalled for wish to stay in power and also his own nepotism, corruption and cronyism in government and state functions in general; together with no-need to leave the militaristic maneuvers of government.

“The NRM under the leadership of President Y. K. Museveni came up with the ten point programe of action. In 1987, Basing on the ten point program, President Museveni launched a Minimum Economic Recovery Programme followed by a series of reforms aimed at restoring macro-economic stability to provide a favourable environment for economic growth and private sector development. The key reforms were, liberalization, privatization, currency reform, changes in tax and fiscal policy plus restraining expansion in government expenditure while maintaining focus on economic recovery and growth” (Uganda 25 Years of Nation Building and Progress, Jan 1986 – Jan 2011, Printed: May 2011).

That is why that when I read that President Museveni had the genius idea of a 20-Point Program, I was latterly laughing and crying in sadness of this so-called leader. Who supposed to lead and make change; after thirty years in power with a 81 Cabinet and created astonishing amounts of districts and sub-counties, that every town and nearly all villages have either one or two central LCV and other councilors to be bribed by the central-government. And in his genius attempt to spoilt the trade, he comes with another plan to cover over the atrocities and pledges that we’re recycled under campaigning in 2015 and 2016.

This comes from the leader who of late has already these wonderful plans to hold onto and supposed to finish in his lifetime, as he wants to promise the Ugandans the middle-Income position and also economic progress in the levels of South Korea and Singapore. Though, the corrupt and donor-friendly behavior is still necessary since the Petroleum money, is still not certain as it is still needed more development and investment before the profits from the black-oil drilled in the Lake Albert basin and Albertine region.

The first plan that was supposed to take over the failed 10-Point Program from the Economic and Development of the Republic, where the magical and all-covering; the Second plan the famous ‘Vision2040’, where all pieces of government and private sector we’re interconnected as the NRM-Regime had plans to reconfigure and also establish what they had did between 1986 and 2013. The plan that we’re released in 2013 said this: “a transformed Ugandan society from a peasant to a modern and prosperous country within 30 years”; I do not feel the need to say how much further they have come in the last three years.

Hon. Francis Mwijukye said: “Today I visited Karungu government secondary in Karungu subcounty- Buhweju district where I found students studying under very disturbing circumstances” (Mwijukye, 25.06.2016)

The third plan that comes to mind was the National Development Plan II (NDPII) who we’re drafted and surely released during the 2015, and we’re written March 3, 2015. This was a plan for the infrastructure projects and the defining projects that we’re interconnected with railroads and also the major road projects of the UNRA, which is certain a magnifying economic prospect as the investments in infrastructure as the unfolding economic problems, that recently was reported from UNRA. So the President has issues with this alone, before releasing the 20-Points Program of 2016.

So with the hearing of a new plan from the grand National Resistance Movement and the Presidency of 30 years, if he had finished or wished to finish the first plan, the 10-Point Program. But, that wouldn’t make the political battlefield and the regression of progress so obvious; if anybody believes he will ever finish a program or even sufficiently have due-diligence behind a new program, you should dream on or reconsider you thought pattern.

With the newly released 20-Program Plan of 2016, is a rehash of old-ideas into a new format with the mix of the Vision2040, 10-Point Program and the National Development Plan II. That is a combined of these visions, as the 10-Point program is totally out of whack, the 2040 is in the midst of it and been in the works for three years without any real progress on the matter. The NDPII is a framework for basic transport and infrastructure that are parts of all the three other plans. So, this is far from finish and with the UNRA troubles, the World Bank suspension and the others issues with financing the grand infrastructure projects of late, while the Standard Gauge Railway and the Northern Corridor Integration Projects (NCIP), which is a collective planning of infrastructure between the East African nations we’re it need cooperative effort from the countries.

So with all of this in mind, when reading the progressive, the revolutionary, the rebels new plan like the monstrosity levels of belief that he can sell yet another amazing plan to the public and donors. The reassessment the donors should do is that this in the mass of affairs and tricks the NRM-Regime have come with for three decades and was supposed to be new-found governance; instead it has been more of the same, just in another name, another package and another head-honcho who been able to smile with Bill Clinton, Gadaffi and all the dignitaries that wanted spend money on his government and newly created institutions under his leadership. This has all happen, while the Western countries have accepted the atrocities and brutality against civilians for the peace and assurance of progression of democratic values that over time have been proven as fool’s gold.

The reality of this new Plan is to repackage the same of promises and the so-called progression of the government institutions and the civil service delivery as hospitals, schools and roads. Through the neo-liberal structural adjustment plan that we’re accepted to get more World Bank loans in the 1980s, while now because of less donor-funding adding more loans into the bloated government budgets together with bigger government spending on growing parliament, growing districts and sub-counties, while the added expenditure on the projects as the rising prices on roads with little due-diligence, higher interests on the fallen loans and the expenses on military equipment. This all with the steady level of inflation and proved little will to change the service delivery from the NRM-Regime, as the international community have let most of it go without any impunity or real care.

As even the European Union proudly did this recently after the fraudulent election they discredit in their own report, still they we’re so giddy to do this:

“Goverment of Uganda to hold political dialogue with European Union as mandated in Art 8 of Cotonou Agreement” (Emma Were Tinka, 28.06.2016). So the true ethics of the European Union and democratic values can be traded of with a decent agreement and when the NRM-Regime can even be validated by EU, this talk and consider, even sign the agreement, but they might not implement it; as the due-diligence have never been a thing for Museveni, so after all this year? Why should it all of a sudden matter?

This new plan is another one of his schemes and plot to get donor-aid and get funding for his nepotism, his cars and airplanes as the direct budget and the over-priced infrastructure projects have silenced his critics as that have been used on tear-gas, Russian fighter-jets and other needed procurement, not on fixing schools and buying school-books for the students. That is no-need and not proved added value. This 20-Program plan is just non-sense and the ones that buys into it, are long lost causes like Ofwono Opondo and Andrew Mwenda. Peace.

The EFF statement on the hollow recitals of the freedom charter by the ANC:

10 January 2015

The Economic Freedom Fighters notes the attempts by Mr. Jacob Zuma, the President of the ANC to restate the Freedom Charter as if it is the programme of the ANC, while all evidence is out there for all to see that the ANC has abandoned the Freedom Charter. In the speech delivered during the rally in Cape Town, Mr. Zuma recurrently mentioned key clauses of the Freedom Charter and ‘economic freedom’, yet made no concrete commitments and programme on how the ANC government will realise the Freedom Charter and economic freedom.

The EFF is aware that the whole intention of the ANC January 8 statement was an attempt to try to copy and therefore undermine the radical and militant programme of the Economic Freedom Fighters, because our programme is the only programme that finds true resonance with the people of South Africa. The EFF remains the only radical and militant movement which unapologetically pursues a radical economic revolution programme which will change the lives of our people. An attempt by the ANC to imitate the radical programme of the EFF only through rhetoric will always be exposed as pure farce because the ANC government is implementing a neo-liberal, right wing and capitalist programme called the National Development Plan: Vision 2030.

The NDP: Vision 2030 is the official programme of the ANC, adopted in their 53rd National Conference, and any talk of the Freedom Charter is meant to mislead the people of South Africa. What we know about the Freedom Charter, which the ANC government will never implement are the following:

• The Freedom Charter says ‘the mineral wealth beneath the soil, the banks and monopoly industries shall be transferred to the ownership of the people as a whole”, and this has been correctly understood in the former liberation movement as Nationalisation of Mines. What we know is that the ANC will never nationalise Mines because majority of its senior leaders are privately benefitting from privately owned Mines.
• The Freedom Charter says ‘all other trade and industry shall be controlled to assist the wellbeing of the people”. What we know is that the ANC is committed to free-market capitalism and will never control trade for the benefit of the people.
• The Freedom Charter says ‘land shall be shared amongst those who work it’. What we know as a fact is that the ANC has dismally failed to redistribute land and will continue to buy land from those who stole it, despite their admission that the willing-buyer willing-seller approach to land redistribution has dismally failed.
• The Freedom Charter says, “all shall have the right to occupy land wherever they choose”. What we know is that the ANC government will never allow even landless people to occupy land wherever they choose, but will instead send murderous police to evict people from the land as they did in Lenasia and Lwandle.
• The Freedom Charter says ‘the doors of learning and culture shall be opened”. What we know is that the ANC government has dismally failed to provide free quality education as post secondary level and have not built adequate capacity to absorb the entirety of students who exit the secondary schooling level.

• The Freedom Charter says, “slums shall be demolished, and new suburbs built where all have transport, roads, lighting, playing fields, creches and social centres”. What we know is that 21 years since the first inclusive elections with the ANC in power, more than 15% of the South African population lives in slums and informal settlements.

These key tenets of the Freedom Charter and many others are not contained in the National Development Plan, which is the official government plan of the ANC and the right wing political parties in Parliament.

The EFF speaks about the Freedom Charter because our Founding Manifesto says,

“The EFF draws inspiration from the radical, working class interpretation of the Freedom Charter, because, since its adoption in 1955, there have been various meanings given to the Freedom Charter. The EFF’s interpretation of the Freedom Charter is one which says South Africa indeed belongs to all who live in it, and ownership of South Africa’s economic resources and access to opportunities should reflect that indeed South Africa belongs to all who live in it.
The EFF’s interpretation of the Freedom Charter is that which says the transfer of mineral wealth beneath the soil, monopoly industries and banks means nationalisation of mines, banks and monopoly industries”.

The rhetorical commitment to the Freedom Charter by Mr. Zuma is nothing but an attempt to divert attention from the genuinely radical economic freedom programme and struggle of the EFF. This is done because the ANC has run out of ideas. It is evidently clear that with age and many years of existence, the ANC is not maturing, but suffering from memory loss and lack of creativity and innovation. The ANC cannot think and always rely of imitating even Kwaito musicians hence their slogan of ANC Kuze Kose and ANC Y’tjukutja because they take ideas of Kwaito musicians, not vice versa. They even tried to imitate the runaway success of the EFF’s red beret and overalls.

The EFF remains the only hope for the people of South Africa and will inspire many generations to come because when we take over political power, we will capture the State, and redistribute the economy for the benefit of all. Once again, the EFF has proven that we are the vanguard of the working class and revolutionary ideas in South African society and those who copy us should do so with care because we will always expose fake imitatations that are not genuine.

ISSUED BY THE ECONOMIC FREEDOM FIGHTERS
LEHLOHONOLO FANA MOKOENA (Acting National Spokesperson)
Cell Number: +27817244799
Website: http://www.effighters.org.za/
Email: communications@effighters.org.za
Facebook: Fana L Mokoena || Twitter: @EconFreedomZA and @fanamokoena