SACP general-secretary Blade Nzimande has blamed former president Thabo Mbeki for some of the woes that the ANC and the country are facing today.

Nzimande yesterday ascribed the current problems the ruling party faces the Mbeki's policy of promoting a faction of black empowerment beneficiaries that was linked to the ANC.

Nzimande said this faction used the more than 200 government agencies in the name of economic development.

"These operated as private companies and sites for accumulation on behalf of capital in general and specifically an emerging BEE capitalist stratum.

"The state-owned enterprises often failed to respond to the developmental mandate of government."

Nzimande said the government should conduct an audit of these agencies, close down irrelevant ones and revise the formulation of their boards.

Nzimande's views are contained in a discussion paper for the SACP congress in December.

The paper blames Mbeki of "hijacking and frustrating the ANC developmental agenda and replacing it with a pro-business programme that has frustrated the ANC's programme of transforming the country".

"This hegemony was secured, in part, thanks to a leadership collective around comrade Mbeki," says the paper.

Nzimande also warned that remnants of Mbeki's supporters remained within the tripartite alliance and could continue to frustrate Zuma's service delivery agenda.