ANCYL’s elective congress off to bumpy start

July 1, 2023 139

The start of the ANC Youth League’s 26th elective conference has been marred by controversy after the ANC’s national secretary general, Fikile Mbalula, issued a letter suspending the youth league’s national convener, Xola Nqola.

Mbalula has accused Nqola of having forged ahead with the ANCYL’s Eastern Cape conference without his authorisation.

The ANC Secretary General says Nqola misled the league.

“Accordingly, we directed in clear and unambiguous terms that the ANCYL Eastern Cape Provincial Conference should not proceed, but rather be scheduled to take place after the ANCYL National Congress,” says Mbalula in the suspension letter.

The governing party’s youth league is holding its first elective conference in eight years.

Thousands of delegates are attending the congress in Nasrec, Johannesburg, that’s been convened by a National Youth Task Team, which was established after the league was disbanded in 2019.

The Youth League’s electoral committee says a total number of 3 318 branches were audited and of those 2 972 were verified.

The committee’s Jomo Nyambi announced that on five people met the threshold to appear on the ballot paper:

President: Collen Malatji
Deputy President: Phumzile Mgcina
Secretary General: Mntuwoxolo Ngudle
Deputy Secretary General: Tsakani Shiviti
Treasurer: Zwelo Masilela

The ANC Youth League, which was formed to represent the plight of young people, took a different turn over the years and now has its relevance questioned.

Political analyst, Yolokazi Mfuto, says while the youth league’s relevance in the current political landscape has become even more important, it has become unfortunate that in recent times the youth wing would find itself at loggerheads with its mother-body.

Mfuto says young people in the youth league end up becoming conveyer belts for the elder leadership.

“It is important that the space within the ANC is cultivated and enables young people to have a voice to ensure that they are represented in Parliament and other structures: provincial and legislatures.”

Mfuto says the relevance of the ANC youth wing needs a special kind of revitalisation and for them to find a common ground and mission.

She adds that some of the issues may be fueled by the fact that young people themselves are not united.

This weekend’s conference is expected to conclude on Tuesday and it remains to be seen whether the league’s new leaders will be able to return the organisation to its former glory and decisively tackle issues that affect young people in South Africa with clarity and without fear.