COSATU affiliates in the main agree that President Jacob Zuma should step down, and that he should not be allowed to "rule from the grave".
But the labour federation is faced with a dilemma — it must manage the way it communicates this message to its ally, the ANC, in a way that is less confrontational than the approach adopted by its former general secretary, Zwelinzima Vavi.
Vavi was criticised by the ANC and internally in Cosatu for his "oppositionist stance" towards the governing party, which led to his isolation and eventual expulsion from the federation.
It is understood that affiliate bosses want to ensure that they communicate this message to the ANC in a manner that is not divisive and will not do so publicly.
Further complicating matters is Cosatu president Sdumo Dlamini, a staunch Zuma ally.
Strong Cosatu unions such as the South African Democratic Teachers Union, the National Union of Mineworkers and the National Education, Health and Allied Workers Union are backing Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa to take over from Zuma, arguing that it is ANC tradition for the deputy to take over the reins from the incumbent.
It is understood that affiliates across the board, barring the South African Transport and Allied Workers Union, feel strongly that Zuma’s failings were at the heart of the ANC’s poor performance in the 2016 local government election.
In its assessment of the ANC election results at its last central executive committee (CEC) meeting in August, union bosses conceded that their members — workers — no longer had confidence in the president, saying he should not complete his term in the Union Buildings, nor should he "rule from the grave".
This means that when the ANC elects new leadership either in an early conference, or at the end of 2017 and Zuma is replaced as party president, he should also vacate his government position.
This had to be communicated privately to the ANC.
Cosatu leaders met ANC top brass last Monday to discuss a possible bilateral meeting.
Its official statement after the August 22-24 CEC meeting said "internal factional battles, the corruption scandals and the growing distance from the people" had eroded support for the ANC.
It added that it was "undeniable" that voters were unhappy with the ANC’s handling of Nkandla and with the "economic corporatism, corruption, political and bureaucratic arrogance including factionalism that has left the ANC paralysed".
On Monday, Cosatu will hold a special CEC meeting to further discuss political matters relating to the alliance, talks that were deferred at its elective congress in 2015. The discussions are set to include whether the federation will publicly back Ramaphosa to succeed Zuma.
It will also include which candidates it will back for other top ANC positions and whether the federation will support calls for a consultative conference of the ANC.
Cosatu is likely to be pitted up against a strong faction in the ANC — the premier league, which includes the chairmen of the North West, Mpumalanga and the Free State — who prefer AU commission chairwoman Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma to lead the party after its next conference.
Dlamini-Zuma is seen as the candidate who would allow Zuma to "rule from the grave" and she is also supported by the ANC Women’s League.
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The federation was a key constituency in Zuma’s ascent to the helm of the ANC — but it has since been considerably weakened after a debilitating factional fight in the aftermath of the ANC’s last elective conference.
Ironically, in that conference, Cosatu largely threw its weight behind Zuma, which was the beginning of the internal fight that eventually culminated in the expulsion of its then largest affiliate the National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa), and Vavi’s axing.
Numsa on Sunday said that it would be pushing ahead, with the formation of a workers’ party to contest future elections.
The union has also called for Zuma to resign.
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