President Jacob Zuma on Monday criticised attempts to open the 2012 succession debate as "ill-conceived and premature".

Speaking at the Congress of South African Trade Union (Cosatu) tenth National Congress, Zuma said the African National Congress's (ANC's) top brass decided on Friday to develop a code of conduct for lobbying ahead of the electoral conference in 2012.

"We cannot deviate and divert our minds from delivery and think about who will be what in 2012, that's opportunistic," Zuma told delegates in Midrand.

He said it was "high time" to have a code of conduct to guide the process of electing leadership.

"The promotion of a succession debate so prematurely is a mischievous diversion and it must be avoided at all costs," he said.

This was after the ANC Youth League (ANCYL) as well as some alliance partners commented on the 2012 ANC leadership contest.

Zuma defended government policy, including the creation of the much-maligned Planning Ministry under Trevor Manuel.

Delegates agreed at an alliance summit in October 2008 that there was a need for a high-level planning and monitoring capacity in government.

Zuma said it was in line with this that he set up a Planning Commission in the Presidency that would have "the power to align the work of all government departments and organs of State to government's developmental agenda".

Zuma said the ANC would now comment on the green papers produced by Manuel and Collins Chabane, the Minister in the Presidency for Performance Monitoring and Evaluation, and Cosatu would be allowed to do the same.

He also referred to the recent strike by members of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), saying the ruling party's highest decision-making body had decided to deunionise the military.

"We strongly believe that this is a matter of national security," he said.

Cosatu had come out in support of union representation for the SANDF. Earlier on Monday, Cosatu president S'dumo Dlamini called on government to rethink its decision to deunionise.

Zuma said the ruling party leadership supported the establishment of a military services commission.

It was critical that the conditions of the soldiers improved and that they should belong to an association which would help them to solve problems.

However, it was problematic when soldiers belonged to a union with the right to strike.

Delegates at the congress expressed different views on deunionising the military.

"They must protect the country, how can they go on strike? What if another country attacks while they are on strike?" said Ntombi Mgadleka.

"We must look at this thing properly, like the President said.

"They are supposed to protect us," agreed Ethel Sibanyoni.

Tshepo Mathenshe, however, felt that belonging to a union was a constitutional right.

"There is no solution to that one, it's tough, but how can you take that right away? How can you say they can't unionise?" he said.

Dlamini warned government on labour brokering, saying Cosatu would bring the country to a standstill if they were not banned.

Zuma was tight-lipped on this issue in his address.

"We want to see equal commitment by government to ban labour brokers and not to regulate them," he said.

"If this does not happen, Cosatu will indeed take the country to a standstill on this matter."

Labour brokering and contract work was on the minds of many Cosatu delegates at the congress.

A delegation from the Eastern Cape said they expected work to be done on ensuring that labour brokering and contract work was banned by the government.

"They are killing us with contract work, there are no benefits and there is no security," said delegate Vusi Tembi.

Cosatu president Dlamini said the Young Communist League and the ANCYL had a programme of action in place to tackle labour brokers.

Both Dlamini and South African Communist Party general secretary Blade Nzimande dismissed assertions of tension within the ruling alliance, saying the relationship had never been stronger, despite differences of opinion on certain issues.

"There are no hostile differences within our ranks as we speak to you at this time," Dlamini said.

Nzimande said the tension within the alliance was a thing of the past since the removal of Thabo Mbeki as State President last year. He accused the media of reporting on tensions out of habit.

"The media are going through withdrawal symptoms," he said.