SACP to establish left-wing, working-class movement, eyes election run

JOHANNESBURG - The South African Communist Party (SACP) says it is establishing a left-wing, working-class movement and is not ruling out the possibility of running for elections. 

The SACP has never run for elections since it is in a tripartite alliance with the African National Congress (ANC) and COSATU. 

However, the party has grown frustrated with the delay to reconfigure the alliance terms of agreement. 

More recently, it has been critical of the ANC forming a Government of National Unity with what it called right-wing parties like the Democratic Alliance (DA) and the Freedom Front Plus.

At a media briefing on Sunday, SACP secretary-general, Solly Mapaila, said that the ANC had capitulated to capitalist and right-wing forces. 

"The socialist axis of the alliance can no longer rely solely on seeking reconfiguration from within while continuing to build a vanguard character of the SACP. We will intensify efforts to forge a popular left front and build a powerful socialist movement of the workers and poor. This shall form part of the broader imperative of reconfiguring the alliance, including from without, and remains open in our modalities to contest the battle of democracy including through elections as further elaborated by our recently held augmented central committee."