‘No crisis in youth league’

If Julius Malema goes, there are still thousands of other Juliuses in the country and in the ANC Youth League structures.

This is the view of Vukani Ndlovu, convener of the youth league’s provincial task team (PTT) in KZN, put in place by Malema following the disbandment of the youth league provincial executive committee (PEC) in September.

Ndlovu was speaking ahead of today’s ANCYL NEC meeting, expected to discuss the future of its expelled president. The NEC meeting also comes amid a volatile situation among its KwaZulu-Natal members and structures.

The disbanded PEC, which has appealed to the ANC secretary-general Gwede Mantashe, is at loggerheads with the PTT about which is the legitimate structure.

“The leadership has 14 days to appeal and if it fails, can still petition the national executive committee and even the national conference in December,” said Ndlovu.

Ndlovu said in their last lekgotla they took a decision that the ANCYL leadership elected in Gallagher Estate in June last year would continue until another elective conference came.

“The leadership, which includes comrades Malema, Sindiso Magaqa and others, will stay in office and see the end of the term in 2014. We shall exhaust all avenues to see to it that this happens. We shall affirm our position on this.”

Ndlovu said the disbanded PEC which included chairman Mthandeni Dlungwane and deputy secretary S’boniso Duma had no political authority to speak on such matters as they remained disbanded. Ndlovu said that it would be opportunistic for some leaders to start positioning themselves to take over from Malema, who turned 31 on saturday.

Dlungwane and Duma, both ANC MPLs, have welcomed the expulsion of Malema who had stripped them of their powers.

“The noise made by those still supporting Malema is just hot air. It’s also very unfortunate that seasoned comrades like (Fikile) Mbalula still support him going against the decisions of the ANC,” said Duma on saturday.

Mbalula bemoaned the expulsion of Malema on Friday telling SABC radio that his ejection was a “political tragedy”.

“Julius and his generation have actually suffered a blow that we did not come to realise or test,” the former youth league president and predecessor to Malema was quoted as saying.

Duma said the expulsion of Malema showed that ill-discipline would no longer be tolerated in the ANC.

nathi.olifant@inl.co.za - Sunday Tribune