Micro-lending programme or Youth League slush fund?

The DA Youth welcomes the announcement by the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) that they will be implementing a micro-lending and mentoring programme for small businesses as we proposed at the launch of our National Entrepreneurship Campaign in October.

However, we require assurance that this will not simply become a slush fund for ANC YL cronies. The NYDA needs to clarify, in light of their track record of political bias, how the scheme will be administered to ensure resources are objectively disbursed to those who genuinely need them and not simply used as a tool to reward ANC YL cronies.

Based on the track record of the NYDA, young people have every right to be concerned about the possible mal-administration of this fund. Incidents include:

• The fact that the national and provincial NYDA boards are occupied almost exclusively by ANC YL leaders;
• The spending of R106 million of state funds, meant to help young South Africans, on the ANC YL-hosted World Festival of Youth and Students;
• Most recently, the endorsement by the NYDA of the ANC YL's economic freedom marches in October - an unprecedented demonstration of political bias by a state entity.

The reality is that the NYDA have proven themselves to be nothing more than an employment agency for ANC YL cronies. If they want us to take this initiative seriously they need to put guarantees in place that it will benefit all South Africans and not just their political elite

Statement issued by Makashule Gana, DA Youth Leader, November 7 2011

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