South African Communist Party 

SACP statement regarding falsehoods in the Sunday World news article on SACP Leaders

Sunday, 6 July 2025: The South African Communist Party (SACP) expresses profound indignation at the inaccurate claims made in the Sunday World newspaper report regarding SACP leaders defying the Party’s resolution to contest local government elections, as outlined in the 5th Special National Congress in 2024. The report, published on Sunday 6 July 2026, purports to reveal an alleged internal rebellion within the SACP based on the Party’s decision to contest the upcoming local government elections. However, this report is devoid of factual evidence and constitutes blatant misinformation from the outset.

The report appears to be a product of age-old speculation and propaganda employed by certain sections of the South African media when confronted with an instance of scarcity of substantive news. The headline, while attempting to capture public attention, lacks any substantiating news content in the end, leaving the readers with more guesswork than facts. The Sunday World seems to believe that the SACP’s decision to contest the elections should be portrayed, above all, as a controversial issue, thereby propagating it as a sensationalised story without offering any new revelations or actual news.  This headline in particular is a click-bait which represents the lowest journalistic standard or practice.

This headline and article align with the narrative of individuals who harbour some animosity towards the SACP and criticise its actions and decisions as they are part of this negative disposition. This section of political actors and commentators seeks to create a manufactured scenario of public outrage and a verbal altercation between ANC and SACP members and leaders, thereby accelerating their efforts to undermine the Alliance for the benefit of those who oppose the revolution. This aligns with the long-standing strategy of divide-and-conquer. It is a longstanding desire for many SACP critics and opponents to isolate the SACP from the working class, its movement and progressive sections of society, thereby fulfilling their anti communist aspirations.

As SACP, we unequivocally oppose this agenda and will not permit the media to portray us as a political aggressor attempting to undermine our historic political accomplishments, which is illogical. We will engage in a constructive dialogue with journalists and continue to advocate for media freedom, ensuring that news reporting is devoid of sensationalism and distortions. This, in the final analysis, is political gossip intended to poison the rank and file of the SACP as much it is intended to sow divisions among the high ranking officials and leadership of the Party. The SACP calls on its members to defend their Party and resist this form of infiltration by falsehoods and misrepresentations.

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ISSUED BY THE SOUTH AFRICAN COMMUNIST PARTY,
FOUNDED IN 1921 AS THE COMMUNIST PARTY OF SOUTH AFRICA.