The dominant faction of the African National Congress (ANC) believes in state capitalism, Democratic Alliane (DA) MP Tim Harris said on Sunday.

"... the state acts as the dominant player, and uses markets for their own political gain," he told delegates on the second day of the party's federal congress in Boksburg.

"This is the version of Malusi Gigaba and Ebrahim Patel's New Growth Path and the motivation behind the idea of a state mining company, a state bank and a state housing company."

He said the DA's vision was for an open society.

"The DA would give more money and more power to the competition authorities than this government does," said Harris.

The opposition wanted to break up the most monopolistic companies in the country.

"Yes, we would break up parastatals like SAA, parts of Eskom, the SABC and Denel and distribute the shares to ordinary South Africans through the 2.5-million stokvels across the country."

He said the DA had three main critics, Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan, Pallo Jordan, and Blade Nzimande.

"To Mr Gordhan I say: 'we have never promoted unfettered markets....'

"To Mr Jordan I say: 'Shame on you for questioning the role Helen Suzman played as the lone opposition voice in the apartheid parliament.'"

He said Nzimande had also criticised the DA as a party for whites.

"He's like the frog in the pot of water oblivious to the rising temperature. To Mr Nzimande, I say: 'Watch your back.' "

He continued: "You can pretend the DA is the way you imagine it to be, or you can open your eyes and see our party fill Walter Sisulu Square in Kliptown to the rafters.

"Or you can come and join us here today and meet thousands of South Africans... who are gatvol of the ANC and who will flood this province in a blue wave in 2014."

Harris said the Congress of South African Trade Unions masqueraded as a social movement whose real goal was to maximise the salaries of their workers.

"To protect this group they have leveraged their political influence to block the youth wage subsidy that would create an estimated 178 000 jobs," said Harris.

He took another swipe at the ruling party, saying the ANC's talk on economic freedom had another meaning.

"On the far right, the racial nationalists in the ANC – and the nationalists no longer in the ANC Youth League – talk about 'economic freedom in our lifetime' but really they mean the freedom to access tenders and buy expensive watches," said Harris.

"The ideas of the far left and the far right have taken our economy backwards."

He said he was sick of South Africa appearing on the front page of international newspapers for the wrong reasons.