ANC YOUTH LEAGUE'S RESPONSE TO STATEMENTS OF SACP GENERAL SECRETARY
BLADE NZIMANDE:
In the article published on the SACP Online publication, Umsembenzi Online (see here), SACP General Secretary, Dr. Blade Nzimande says:
"Ruth First, as a leader of the YCL, and a supporter in building a revolutionary youth league for the ANC in the 1940s, would have been deeply disappointed about the current narrow and factionalist struggles within the ANC Youth League. These factionalist and divisive struggles within the ANCYL do not serve the interests of the youth of our country today and into the future. A critical struggle today, in honour and in memory of Ruth First, is that of defeating tenderpreneurship within our youth structures, and to reposition the YCL to play a vanguard and leading role in the struggles of working class and poor youth of our country".
The ANC Youth League is disappointed by Dr. Nzimande's observations because they suggest that there are factionalist struggles and once again continues with the undertone that there are so called "tenderpreneurs" within the ANC Youth League. This kind of engagement is a public spat and against what the African National Congress said should never be done.
The ANC Youth League would under normal circumstances not respond to these lame, unscientific observations, but because they have potential to mislead readers of Umsembenzi online and followers to Dr. Nzimande, it is important that we clarify some of these issues and altogether stand above attempts to label the ANC YL. Our organisation is more serious than that.
There is completely no narrow and factionalist struggle in the ANC Youth League, but less than 5 ill-disciplined members and ex-members of the ANC Youth League who misled branches, some of whom are expelled and undergoing disciplinary action. The ANC leadership (which Dr. Nzimande is part of) has collectively acknowledged that these elements are ill-disciplined and instructed them to withdraw Court cases and stop organising parallel activities of the ANC Youth League. It appears that the honest organisational observation of the ANC and decisive intervention is not noticed by Dr. Nzimande, he only sees factional struggles, which are more of his imaginations than reality.
Dr. Nzimande's observations confirm the reports the ANC YL recurrently received that some of the wayward and ill-disciplined elements in the ANC Youth League are handled by the SACP. Now that the proverbial dogs have been hit so hard, the handlers are coming out in cry foul and present a picture that there is a factional problem in the ANC Youth League. The continued label of tenderpreneurs is problematic and suggests that the ANC Youth League is an organisation that pursues tenders in a corrupt manner. Such is entirely not a reflection of reality, and some of the allegations spread were cleared by the Public Protector.
The ANC Youth League advises Dr. Nzimande to stay out of issues he has no comprehension of because some of the observations he makes have potential to undermine his integrity as leader of the alliance. In the future, it would be difficult to seek advice and counsel from Dr. Nzimande because he is being embroiled in labelling the ANC Youth League.
Ruth First, whose political development within the youth movement is traceable, would have been so disappointed by SACP Senior leadership that bow so low to be associated and linked with imagined "narrow and factional struggles" of the ANC Youth League.
Perhaps the suggestion of repositioning the YCL is important, because it would stop being a lapdog and become a vibrant youth formation that robustly mobilises society behind the SACP. Both the SACP and YCL should be repositioned so that they are on the ideological Left of the ANC Youth League, and would maybe begin to raise fundamental ideological questions and stop imagining factional battles in the ANC YL.
Statement issued by Floyd Shivambu, ANC Youth League Spokesperson, August 21 2010
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