In desperate need of a 1944 moment

With the problems facing the youth of our country, continent and the world; the need to rally young people behind the ANC in the face of a rampant and growing opposition... The role of the ANC Youth League has never been more crucial.

While the recent memory many might have of the ANC YL is that of an aggressive and tough talking organisation under Julius Malema there is a need to reacquaint society of the potential value of the ANC YL. I say potential value because the ANC YL is like an unrealised dream... It is full of potency that must be properly marshalled towards gainful exercises of its political might in creating a better society and world.

While the intention is not to critique Malema's leadership style, it is inescapable to note that the relations between the ANC YL and its mother body, the African National Congress deteriorated to a new low in the memory of this author. Never has the ANC YL in my memory had to fight for its very own existence in the face of a brutal clampdown on what was, rightly or wrongly, perceived as acts of gross ill discipline committed by the league and its leadership.

While discipline is the foundation of organisation, and every aspect of human endeavour is guided by rules, the spectre of a meek youth league does not augur well for both our country and the ANC.

The generation of 1944 is widely credited with infusing vibrancy within the ANC. Mandela, Tambo, Sobukwe, Sisulu, Majombozi, Lembede, Mda and many others are recorded by history as the turbo charge that propelled the ANC to heightened resistance and ultimately the armed struggle.

This ANC YL was very conscious of its role in society, it sought to build the capacity of its members, professionally and otherwise. While not being educated is not a sin, it recognised that this was a disadvantage and therefore put a premium on education

Naturally, old people are conservative and it so happens that the ANC is led by mature comrades and consequently, the ANC is by and large a conservative organisation. In recent times, the ANC YL tried to rattle this conservatism at a great price not only to Malema et al but the organisation as well.

Media reports of Gwede Mantashe's Organisational Report which calls the ANC YL a "counterforce" to the ANC are a testimony to this deterioration of relations and differing of perspectives between mother and child organisations.

It is therefore quite critical that the YL finds itself a way out of this morass. The suspension and expulsions of its leadership likely to be confirmed by the 53rd Conference of the ANC have placed the organisation in the unenviable position of having to begrudgingly replace these leaders earlier than they thought they would have to.

This unfortunate situation presents the league with an opportunity to reinvent itself and shed the baggage of the 'economic freedom' struggle tactics. While the notion of 'economic freedom' is noble indeed, how it was pursued and received by many including the leadership of the ANC created some of the problems the ANC YL is currently in.

It would therefore be prudent for the league to consider other tactics and reinvent itself, that is if the National Executive Committee is not dissolved by the National Conference in Mangaung, which is very much likely as have been intimated by some.

While the 'economic freedom' struggle also involved advocating for a leadership change in the ANC, this has come at a price. The price paid for the efforts of the YL under Julius has been quite high. While they fashioned themselves as revolutionaries who were prepared to pay the ultimate price with their lives, it remains to be seen how many would risk expulsion given that the ANC leadership has shown an appetite to go all the way in maintaining 'discipline'. It remains an issue of contention that the charges upon which Julius and others were expelled were political or not but one fact remains that the ANC DC processes have emasculated the YL.

The ANC YL has to reinvent itself by presenting credible leadership, which the person, character and leadership style of Ronald Lamola etc. promises to do. His untainted history of struggle in the youth and student movements and academic qualifications put him in a good stead to perform this role without fear.

The second task is for the youth league to advance the concept of 'economic freedom' beyond the crude calls for nationalisation. A solid campaign guided by objective realities, rooted in the masses of our youth must be unleashed to contribute to the improvement of the living conditions of the youth of our country.

Instead of engaging in wild vocal exchanges on all manner of things, we need an ANC YL that will balk at news of the National Youth Development Agency spending close to a Million Rands on berets and who knows what useless else. A YL that will encourage its members to report and rebel against corruption and patronage which robs talented and deserving youth of socio economic opportunities in their land of birth.

This country needs a youth league that will focus on ensuring that every young person is either at school, or in productive economic activity. The silence of the league in the aftermath of publication of the series of embarrassing results of tests on literacy and mathematical aptitude of schoolchildren is disturbing to say the least.

The '1944 moment' needed by the league will give it impetus to use its energy positively in the quest for a meaningful contribution to our society. This '1944 moment' must be a vision of our desired future free of corruption, crime, disease and only visionary and committed young people who stand to inherit that future can design and work hard to ensure that it becomes a reality.

The '1944 moment' needs youth leaders untainted by the recent history of a league enmeshed in all that which is wrong with the motherbody: namely, factionalism, corruption, ignorance and suppression of descent. This moment calls for a leadership fully in touch with the realities of the youth, not that which sees poverty among the youth as only a self-serving tool for political ascendancy in the ranks of the ANC and government.

Instead of allowing it to float aimlesslys like a ship lost at sea, capable young people must stand up and put their shoulders beind the wheel and get the ANC YL back on track focussed on its core mandate which is championing the needs and apirations of young people or it will perish into irrelevance and only live on past glories.

Tembile Yako is a former Secretary General of the South African Students' Congress and a current member of the ANC YL in Tshwane.

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