Moithuti; the South African Students’ Congress online journal has left its infant footprints in on the ideological soil in the post-schooling and training sector and South African society in general. The featured articles on this 7th edition of the 21st NEC are dedicated to unravelling the public discourse relating the interesting subject on the impact of Covid-19 pandemic on the lives of the working-class population in our country. The authors consider the different ideological streams in the debate and attempts a reconnection of this to the classical writing of Marx, Engels and Lenin and other Marxist theorists on the subject of post-war and capitalist crisis.
This platform, inherently since its launch by preceding generations was created for one particular purpose in mind; creation of the space for the generation of Marxist ideas within and outside the student movement. Now, judging from the comments recently made by readers, we can safely say that the articles we have published have lived up to the reputation that we would like this journal to assume; an online journal biased to the views of the left. At a time of low morale and ebb in the theoretical and ideological realms in South Africa, an online journal such as Moithuti are even more relevant.
This edition comes at an interesting time not only in our country but in the world as a whole. The world is currently faced with the pandemic that forced the individual member states across the world to impose lockdowns, force the markets to halt an increasing need for a more human economic framework. One thing is certain, COVID-19 has not brought new challenges but has primarily exposed the already existing challenges, and the capitalist crisis is more evident.
While some governments, including the South African government, have suggested stimulus packages less can be done to save our economies unless the change of economic system. Some Marxist theorists have critiqued these stimulus arguing that these are not intended at stimulating our economy but are merely there to play a role of a fire extinguisher where there is a roof on fire. The real stimulus packages can only come after the pandemic reaches its peak and dies down, the question of whether capitalism will be able to recover remains unknown. The revolutionaries must continue to speak about the unknown while moving from the interpretations of the known. Correctly adhering to the words by Marx that “philosophers have interpreted the world in various ways. The point, however, is to change it.”
This week’s articles come from the following authors:
1. Transformation of the TVET Sector to be first choice institutions by Cde Tinyiko Ntini
2. Asiyifuni iAgenda yama Capitalist: Advancing socialism in the times of COVID-19 by Cde Ntokozo Lunga
3. Pondering plausible community-based feeding initiative models to combat starvation and hunger amidst COVID-19 pandemic and beyond by Cde Mzwandile Thakhudi and Cde Xolani Tseletsele
We trust that our readers will enjoy these thought-provoking articles and continue with the conversations sparked by the articles contained in this edition. Should there be a necessity for responses to the articles we will also publish them.
“Let a hundred flowers bloom and a hundred schools of thought contend”
[Views published here are those of the writer, not of the organization unless indicated otherwise]
Athenkosi Mabona
National Organizer ~ SASCO